


The Making Of...

by CaspyCasp



Series: Journey's End [2]
Category: The Lord of the Rings RPF
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-16
Updated: 2016-07-27
Packaged: 2018-05-21 02:32:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 21,749
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6034684
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CaspyCasp/pseuds/CaspyCasp
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The story of new actress Kira and her role within the cast of Lord of the Rings and her romance with co-star Viggo.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. One Hell of an Adventure

**Author's Note:**

> Before you start reading, I would like to iterate that this is not my story. I did not write it, so I own nothing.  
> It is originally written on Wattpad by Tabatha, and you can find her profile at https://www.wattpad.com/user/XXLoveNiall1DXX
> 
> I own nothing. All things Lord of the Rings related belongs to J.R.R. Tolkien and Peter Jackson, and anything else belongs to Tabatha.
> 
> Thank you.

_**The Making Of...** _

**Chapter One: One Hell of an Adventure  
**

 

" _Thank you for flying with New Zealand Air, we hope you enjoyed your flight. If you have any questions, please contact the customer services desk in the arrivals terminal, we hope you have a pleasant stay in New Zealand._ "

The intercom buzzed and then fell silent.

I smiled nervously as I slowly descended the steps from the plane and set foot for the first time on New Zealand soil... or concrete, rather. I felt a mild sense of victory as I walked across to the arrivals terminal; I'd just flown to the other side of the world all by myself! That was the first scary thing out of the way, now I just had to collect my bags and find out where the hell I was meant to be going. I tucked my thick script under my arm as I stood waiting for my bags to come around the revolving belt. I had been terrified that they might have been sent on the wrong flight or something, but I breathed a sigh of relief as my suitcase came into view, and obviously hadn't ended up in Greenland...

I heaved it off the belt before it could be whisked away, and tried not to get jostled by the crowd as I waited for my final luggage item. With a smile I saw my battered leather guitar case appear from the mysterious land-beyond-the-rubber-flaps and I lifted it to safety, before awkwardly maneuvering myself to freedom, apologizing as I accidentally hit people with my cases.

I made my way towards the main entrance of the airport, and sat myself down on a bench, nervously glancing around. I checked my phone, three new messages, one from my best friend, Lucy, and two from my mum.

' _Hey, have you arrived yet? Good luck on your journey to fame! Don't be running off with any hot movie stars and forgetting about me!_

 _Luc xox_ '

I smiled at the cheery message from my friend and quickly replied.

' _Thanks! Just got off the plane, no sign of any hottie actors yet!_

 _Ki xx_ '

I then flipped down through the two messages from my mum.

' _Have you landed yet?_

 _Mum x_ '

' _Just remembered, did you pack sun-block?_

 _Mum x_ '

I laughed a little at her fretting and punched in a single reply.

' _Just landed, and yes, I remembered, call you tonight!_

 _Kira xx_ '

I remembered just as I sent off the message that 'tonight' here, would be around three in the morning back in Northern Ireland... oh well. The clock on the wall nearby claimed it to be half nine in the morning, it would be around midnight back home.

I looked up, and still saw no one that should be looking for me. I had been told earlier that someone would be here to pick me up, but I had no idea who! I glanced down at the script that was now lying on my knee.

' _The Lord of the Rings,_

 _A Movie by Peter Jackson._ '

Just reading the title gave me butterflies in my stomach - this was really happening! With a slight smile I leafed through the neatly printed pages, each one with my name stamped on them.

"Excuse me?"

I looked up in surprise at the strawberry-blonde man that stood before me.

"Are you, Kira Forest?"

"Erm... yes?" I answered uncertainly as he smiled and held out a hand.

"I'm Colin Green; Peter asked me to come and pick you up."

"Oh... hi!" I grinned, standing and shaking his hand, before picking up my guitar case and swinging my backpack onto my back. I reached for my suitcase, but Colin had already picked it up.

He led me out of the airport quickly, and to a dark green jeep that was waiting outside.

"Sorry it's not a limo!" He joked as we tossed my bags into the back and I climbed into the passenger side. "You probably would have been flying with some of your co-stars if you had left last week." Colin said, starting the engine.

"Well, I was supposed to, but typical British weather meant I couldn't fly from Belfast, and I only got to Heathrow a few days ago." I laughed.

"We were starting to get worried about you; Peter was panicking because he though he'd have to postpone some of your scenes!" Colin laughed along with me as we drove from Wellington airport. "You've already missed some of your stunt training." He added as I tied my brunette hair back into a messy ponytail.

"Brilliant..." I muttered under my breath.

"Don't worry; I'm sure it can be rescheduled." He smiled, turning up the air-con in the sweltering car. "You're not the only lead who missed it."

"Really? Did someone else arrive late?" I asked curiously, glad I wasn't going to be the only person new on set.

"Yeah, you're playing Rana, aren’t you?" I nodded and he continued, "Well, out actor for Aragorn only arrived a day or two ago, he was cast on really short notice. Oh, here we are!" Colin exclaimed, pulling into the car park of a hotel. After he pulled up, he got out and lifted my cases as I picked up my backpack. "You'll be staying here for a few days, until you get settled." He explained, pushing open the door. The receptionist at the desk handed him a key and we stepped into the elevator. "You can have a shower and get changed before we head to the set, I'll be waiting outside in the car." Colin smiled as we approached a room on the third floor, 642.

"Thanks." I grinned as he handed me the key and walked back to the elevator. I was dying to take a shower. I had that horrible 'I've just flown thousands of miles without a wash' feeling.

I entered the room and threw my cases onto the double bed, before taking a quick look around. Bed, sofa, T.V, bathroom, wardrobe, table, it was all I needed. I grabbed a towel from the bed and pulled my wash bag out of my case, before entering the bathroom. I stripped of my icky flight clothes and jumped into the shower, feeling butterflies rise up in my stomach.

' _I'm in New Zealand! I'm in New Zealand and I'm about to go on set of The Lord of the Rings!_ '

I squealed and did a little dance of excitement as I finished washing my hair and shut off the water. I wrapped myself in the towel and quickly pulled a pair of black cut-off jeans and a fitted lilac t-shirt out of my case and yanked them on - while I brushed my teeth and dried my hair. I didn’t want to keep Colin waiting. I quickly ran a brush through my hair and swept my favourite brown eye shadow quickly over my eyelids, before grabbing my script and keys from where they had been tossed on the bed and dashing out the door, slipping on a pair of flip-flops as I went.

I bounced back to the car, feeling refreshed, yet still excited, and terrified all at the same time.

"So, where are we going?" I asked Colin.

"The Rivendell set, in Kaitoke National Park. It's about an hour or so drive."

I nodded and opened my script; I'd already read it twice on the plane, and I thought it was brilliant! I'd loved the Lord of the rings ever since I first read it when I was nine, and since then I had been re-reading it whenever I could, always finding new meanings in the story each time I read it. I had always though it was impossible for someone to capture books in a film, but my first thought after reading the script was 'They've done it'.

Colin and I chatted the whole way to the set. I found out he was a cameraman, and had been given the day off so he could pick me up. He asked about my previous acting experiences, I'd been in plenty of T.V dramas, mostly for the BBC in Scotland (I'd lived there for several years), but I'd never been in a movie - and he quickly found out how much I loved Tolkien's books.

After some time, we pulled up in a car park surrounded my trees, and totally full of trailers. A large wooden sign read 'Kaitoke National Park', and a smaller sign below read, 'Forest temporarily closed due to filming'.

That really confirmed to me that this was all real and really happening. Colin pulled up between another Jeep and a large trailer that had 'Hobbits' written on the door. I bit my lower lip nervously as I stepped out into the bright New Zealand sunshine and Colin led me up a path into the forest. It quickly became cooler once we were under the trees, and after a few minutes walking, I began to hear voices up ahead. As we walked on, I caught glimpses of people amongst the trees and my heartbeat accelerated. Suddenly we entered what was sort of a clearing and I gasped out loud.

It was Rivendell. Right before my eyes was a place that had only existed in a book. It was beautiful, buildings built around the trees that looked like they had been there forever, decorated with beautiful patterns and colours. It looked perfectly natural, apart from the fact it was full of people, cameras and massive lights.

"Impressive, isn't it?" Colin laughed at my reaction, before leading me towards a group of people huddled around a camera. "Peter!" He called out, and a man with dark, messy hair, wearing shorts and a polo-shirt turned towards us. He grinned as we approached.

"Kira!" He cried in the New Zealand accent that had become familiar to me due to our extensive phone conversations.

"Hi, Peter." I smiled, shaking his hand. "It's nice to finally meet you!"

"Exactly!" He laughed. "Terrible business with your flight delay wasn't it? Oh well, you're here now!"

"Hey, Peter! Can you come over here for a second?" Someone called from across the set. I noticed it was Colin; he was crouched over a camera.

"I have to go, but-" Peter tapped the shoulder of a person with their back turned to us. I assumed it was a woman at first because of their long, blonde hair, but when they turned I saw that it was... well, an _elf_.

"Kira, this is Orlando Bloom, he's playing Legolas." Peter introduced us quickly. "Orlando, can you introduce her to a few people? I have to go." He said rushing off, "We're going out for dinner tonight, see you later!"

I turned shyly back to Orlando and smiled.

"Hi." He said in a friendly British accent. "You must be Kira." I shook his outstretched hand as he smiled.

"Yeah," I grinned and then motioned to his costume. "Wow, you look... amazing."

"Thanks, this isn't my real hair by the war." He added, motioning to his wig.

"I figured." I laughed, feeling relieved that I seemed to have already made a friend with a cast member.

"Do you want to take a look around?" Orlando offered, "I've finished all my scenes for today."

"That would be great!" I smiled.

"Ok, let's go!" He grinned. I followed his as he weaved through the cameras and people, introducing me to members of the crew. "Have you met any members of the cast before?" He asked as we walked.

"To be honest, I have no idea who's in this movie!" I laughed. "The only people I was told about were Ian McKellen, Christopher Lee, Elijah Wood and Cate Blanchett, and now I've met you, of course."

"Well, you can meet a few of them now!" Orlando smiled, motioning to a small group of people standing a few feet away. "Hey guys! Look who I've found!" I called. The people turned around and my eyes widened.

"Oh my God... Billy?" I gasped as the Scottish actor grinned.

"Hey Ki!" He laughed as I ran up to him and hugged him. "Watch the feet!" He yelled, staggering back.

"It's been too long!" I grinned as I stepped back and took in his appearance. He looked like an excessively tall Hobbit - complete with massive prosthetic feet.

"Yeah, two years, wasn't it?" He smiled as I nodded. It had been two years since we'd met on the set of a T.V drama in Scotland, although we never acted together, we quickly made friends.

"I had no idea you were in this movie!" I laughed. "And you're a Hobbit!"

"Yep, I'm Pippin! And this is Dominic Monaghan, he's Merry!" He introduced me to the man who stood beside him in similar Hobbit-attire.

"Hi," he smiled, shaking my hand. "Glad you're finally here."

"So am I!" I agreed as Billy moved on to the final person, who I recognized instantly.

"And this is Elijah Wood." Billy smirked as the blue-eyes actor extended his hand and I shook it.

"Hey." He said with a slight American accent. "Nice to meet you."

"Thanks, it's great to meet you too." I smiled, feeling at ease amongst my new co-stars.

"Where's Sean?" Orlando asked.

"Getting coffee." Elijah answered.

"In this weather?" I laughed, referring to the baking sun.

"We've been up since five, getting our feet on." Billy explained.

"I see." I murmured, grimacing at the though of the early hours.

"Do you know where Viggo is?" Orlando asked, "I think our leading lady should meet our leading man!" he playfully elbowed me.

"Leading lady?" I exclaimed. I knew I had a pretty big part, but I'd never though of it as the 'leading lady' role...

"Hey! I thought I was supposed to be the lead!" Elijah joked, "Frodo saves your ass and you know it!"

"Who exactly is my 'leading man' anyway?" I asked.

"Viggo Mortensen." Dominic answered. "You'll get on great, he's awesome."

"Not as awesome as us!" Billy hooted, high-fiving Dom.

"Yeah, well, we should keep going." Orlando smiled. "See you later guys!"

"Bye!" I waved as I followed Orlando further into the set, watching as people dressed as elves wandered past, being filmed on different buildings. I was so busy watching that I tripped over one of the thick lighting cables, and would have crashed to the ground if someone had not caught my arm.

"Careful." A quiet American-accented voice murmured, helping me to my feet.

"Ah there you are, Viggo." I heard Orlando say as I looked to the source of the voice. I almost gasped as I saw the man in full costume smiling down at me.

There was a single thought on my mind.

_Wow._


	2. Teeth Makeup?

_**The Making Of...** _

**Chapter Two: Teeth Makeup?**

 

"Are you alright?" the man asked after helping me to my feet.

"Um... yeah, I'm fine, I just tripped," I stumbled over my words, blushing at my own stupidity. What a great way to meet someone, almost fall flat on your face in front of them.

"Hey, Viggo," I heard Orlando say behind me, "this is Kira."

"Hi," Viggo smiled, holding out his hand, which I shook, "nice to meet you."

"You too," I replied nervously, "and, erm, thanks for catching me back there."

"No problem!" he laughed. "We can't have you breaking your nose on your first day on set!"

"Yeah..." I smiled, looking him up and down, taking in his ruggedly handsome appearance. "Your costume is fantastic."

"Thanks, wait until you see yours!" Viggo grinned.

"Has anyone taken you to meet the guys in makeup yet?" Orlando asked, and I shook my head.

"No, I only just arrived," I replied.

"You should probably meet them; they'll want to do a makeup test, and your wardrobe fitting."

"Okay, are they in the trailers in the car park?" I asked.

"Yeah, I'll take you down; I need to get my wig off anyway!" Orlando laughed. "You coming, Viggo?"

"Sure," Viggo smiled as we began to make our way back through the set towards the car park. We reached a trailer that had 'Aragorn, Legolas, Boromir, Rana & Arwen Makeup' on the door. Orlando pushed the door open.

"Hey guys!" he called out as we entered. I saw two men and a woman with curly blonde hair at one side of the large trailer sitting drinking coffee.

"Hey Orlando, filming all finished for the day?" one of the men asked.

"Well, Viggo and I are done; I think Peter is doing a few more Hobbit scene, and I don't know where Sean and Liv are," Orlando replied as he sat down in front of a mirror. I looked at the other four seats in the trailer as Viggo made his way to one beside Orlando.

"You're here beside me, Kira," Viggo smiled, patting the arm of the free chair on his left. I sat down nervously, as a man went over to Orlando and began to prise his wig off, it looked pretty painful.

"Hey, Viggo, do you mind staying in costume and everything?" the woman asked as she approached me, "I think Peter wanted some photos of you and Kira in costume."

"Sure," he grunted, standing up, "I'm going to find some coffee, do you guys want any?"

"Yeah, that would be great," I smiled; the jetlag was starting to catch up on me.

"Okay, I'll be back in a minute," he replied, before exiting the trailer. The woman approached the back of my chair, brandishing a makeup brush.

"Hey, I'm Louise, you can call me Lou, and I'm going to be your makeup artist for the next year or two!" she said in a cheery New Zealand accent.

"Hi," I smiled as she adjusted the height of my hair and began to pin back layers of my hair around my face. "Erm... do I have to wear a wig?" I asked timidly and she laughed.

"No, your hair is perfect; it just needs a few extensions here and there!" she explained as she began to apply makeup to my face. I breathed a sigh of relief; the wigs didn't look particularly comfy...

Out of the corner of my eye, I watched as Orlando had his pointed ears removed. He noticed me watching and smiled.

"They're foam latex," he explained. "It's like wearing a really rubbery earmuff!" I laughed as Lou continued to attack my face with her makeup brush and then opened up a box of what looked like dark brunette hair.

"These are your extensions," she explained as she saw my startled expression and began to clip them into my hair, making it appear longer and a little more tousled. I looked at my reflection and remembered something that had been bothering me.

"Erm... isn't Rana supposed to have green eyes? My eyes are brown..." I murmured.

"Don't worry; we have contacts here for you!" Lou grinned, handing me a small box. I'd worn contact lenses before, but never coloured ones. I quickly popped them in and blinked and then raised an eyebrow at the emerald green eyes that stared at me from the mirror.

"Right, now open your mouth," Lou commanded.

"What?" I asked as she brandished a small brush with something dark at the end.

"We need to make your teeth look like you've been marching around in the wilderness for months! Now open up!"

I obeyed without much thought, and I heard laughter behind me as Lou began to delicately paint my teeth with a funny-tasting substance.

"Shut up..." I grumbled.

"Don't worry, Viggo has to get it done too!" Orlando chuckled as the door opened. "Speak of the devil..." he muttered as Viggo walked in and set a polystyrene steaming cup of coffee in front of me.

"Getting the teeth done?" he laughed as he sat down. It was pretty surreal, sitting having my teeth coloured in while two actors I'd just met watched me.

"All done," Lou murmured, allowing me to close my mouth, and I looked in the mirror at my teeth and laughed.

"It looks great!" Orlando grinned as Lou opened up a pot of brown stuff.

"What's that?" I asked suspiciously.

"It's your mud," she replied.

"Oh... of course," I mumbled skeptically as she began to dab it onto my cheeks and neck.

Over the course of the next half hour, Lou proceeded to cover me in 'mud', even digging it under my fingernails - which had to be cut down to stumps to look authentic - before she sent me off to the wardrobe trailer. Viggo and Orlando decided to tag along, but Orlando was now wigless, and I could see that he had short dark hair.

"Hey Ngila," Orlando called out cheerfully as he opened the door to a massive trailer. "We brought along the tenth member of the Fellowship!"

I looked around the trailer and for a second, couldn't see anything apart from hundreds of rails full of clothes, until a middle aged woman with messy brunette hair popped up.

"Ah yes, Kira!" she said, weaving through the clothes to get to us. "Hi, I'm Ngila Dickson. I have your costume all ready for you!"

She instantly struck me as the kind of person who was always on the move as she took my arm and shooed at Viggo and Orlando.

"Get out! No boys allowed!" she muttered, pushing them out the door, while still retaining a firm grip on my arm. "And bring back those costumes once you've changed!" she added as she shut the door. Ngila then pulled me through the isles of amazing-looking clothes before coming to the end of a rail with a label stuck on the end that read 'Rana'.

"Here we are," she mumbled half to herself as she rifled through the hangers, before producing an outfit covered in protective plastic. "You can change over there," she said, pointing to a curtain on the other side of the trailer. I took the clothes and quickly slipped behind the curtain. I pulled off my jeans and t-shirt, and then took the faded grey tunic off the hanger and slipped it over my head. I figured the material was supposed to look worn. I then pulled on the faded dark green breeches and picked up the dark coat made of a tough, leather-like material, a lot like the one Viggo had been wearing.

"Are you done? I still have your belts and boots out here, and your weapons," Ngila called.

"Erm, yeah," I replied, pulling on the coat and stepping out. The costume fitted almost perfectly, due to the fact that I'd given my measurements over the phone. Ngila looked at me and pulled some pins out of her pocket, making the final adjustments to my coat.

"Right, you fasten your coat like this..." she said, showing me how to attach the braided loops. "And you wear this belt over the top..." she pulled an intricately detailed leather belt around my waist, buckled it and tied it in a neat knot. "And these are your boots," I was handed a pair of dark leather boots and pulled them on with a little difficulty, due to their length. They were comfy and the leather was supple, as if I had been wearing them for years. Ngila then set a tall mirror in front of me so I could take in my appearance.

"Wow..." I breathed at my transformation. I looked like I had stepped straight out of the pages of The Lord of the Rings!

"Give me a moment and I'll go find your sword," Ngila muttered, bustling off and rummaging in a corner of the trailer, before walking back with a sheathed sword. "This is your steep sword," she said, belting it around my waist. "So be careful, it's sharp!" she then proceeded to attach the sheath of a small dagger to the back of my belt. "And this is your hunting knife."

"Okay..." I mumbled, brushing my fingers over the hilt of my sword.

"Right, let's go find Viggo and Peter," Ngila said, clapping her hands together, and walking quickly towards the door with me in pursuit.

I was momentarily blinded by the bright sunshine outside as I followed Ngila across the car park.

"Hey,"

I turned to see who was speaking to me and smiled as I saw Viggo behind me.

"Hi," I murmured shyly.

"Wow, you look so great!" he grinned, gesturing to my costume.

"Thanks," I smiled and blushed, walking with him as we followed Ngila into the forest and back towards the set.

"Pete!" Ngila called as we re-entered 'Rivendell'. "Viggo and Kira are ready for their photos!"

I saw Peter rise from his directors chair and walk towards us.

"Great, you look fantastic guys! Well done Ngila!" He grinned. "Come on, we'll take the pictures on the set."

Viggo and I followed him up some steps to an intricately designed walkway surrounded by trees.

"Right, just stand here..." Peter mumbles, positioning me, "and Viggo, you go here,"

"Sure," he mumbled, standing beside me and leaning against one of the pillars of the walkway.

"You guys look great together!" Peter smiled, snapping a photo with his camera. I smiled nervously at the compliment, and then realized that there was no point in being awkward around Viggo, as I was going to have to kiss him before too long. I shifted to lean against a pillar with my arm above my head as Peter instructed me. Apparently these were the photos what would be released with the final cast list.

"Viggo, give her a hug!" Peter called out after taking another picture. I blushed as Viggo put an arm around my shoulders and hugged me against him. "Yeah, that's great!" Peter smiled as the camera flashed again. "Right, that's us done for the day, go get changed and I'll see you at the hotel for dinner tonight!"

Viggo dropped his arm from my shoulders and jumped down from the walkway, holding his hand out to help me down.

"Thanks," I smiled as my feet reached the earth again.

"No problem, we can't risk you tripped again!" he teased as I playfully hit his arm.

We chatted on the way back to the trailer, and Lou and one of the guys who I'd seen earlier were waiting for us.

"Ready to get cleaned up?" Lou asked as I sat down in my chair.

"Yeah," I yawned.

"Tired?" Viggo asked from his chair, and I nodded.

"Jetlag..." I mumbled, popping out my contact lenses and pulling them back in their box as Lou started to wipe the makeup off my face.

"Yeah, it's still affecting me, too," Viggo smiled. "Don't worry, it'll pass."

I nodded and then winced as Lou began to remove one of my hair extensions and it snagged on my own hair. I noticed that Kevin - Viggo's makeup artist - wasn't doing anything to Viggo's hair; I had presumed it was a wig, but he must have grown it out himself.

After my makeup was removed, I went and changed in the wardrobe trailer. As I walked back into the car park, I realized that I had no idea of how I was supposed to get back to the hotel.

"Need a lift?"

I turned to see Viggo standing behind me holding a set of car keys.

"Erm... if that's okay?" I stammered.

"It's no bother; everyone's staying in the hotel until we can get permanent lodgings sorted!" he smiled, leading me to large red Jeep. I climbed into the passenger side as Viggo started the engine. "So, what room are you in?" he asked, pulling out of the car park.

"642," I answered. "On the third floor."

"Yeah, I think most of the cast is on that floor,"

"What time are meeting for dinner, at?" I asked, realizing that Peter hadn't told me.

"We all go downstairs at around seven; I can call you if you want,"

"That would be great thanks; I have no idea where the dining room is!" I laughed.

We talked for the rest of the car journey, mostly about how we had been cast. Peter had contacted my agent and I'd sent in an audition tape, whereas Viggo had been phoned one day and told that Peter really wanted him to play Aragorn and if he wanted the part, he'd have to get on a plane to New Zealand the next day!

"It was my son, Henry, that convinced me to take the part; he's a huge fan of the Lord of the Rings books," Viggo smiled.

"You have a son?"

"Yeah, but his mother and I aren't together anymore,"

"Oh, I'm sorry; I didn't mean to be rude..." I stammered, inwardly kicking myself.

"Don't worry about it; we just went our separate ways, is all," he murmured, giving me a comforting smile as he pulled into the hotel car park. He parked and walked me up to my room.

"See you later," Viggo smiled as I unlocked my door.

"Oh, thanks for the lift!" I said, shutting the door behind me and yawning. I hated jetlag. I looked at my bed and then at my watch. I still had a few hours before dinner...

I kicked off my shoes and pushed my cases off my bed, before crashing down onto the pillow and dropping off to sleep.


	3. The Fellowship

**The Making Of...**

**Chapter Three: The Fellowship**

 

I rolled out of bed - slightly refreshed - at six and decided to call my mum. I punched in her number to my phone; it rang three times before she picked up.

" _Hello_?"

"Hi mum, it's me," I smiled.

" _Kira! How are things?_ "

"Great, I've met some of the cast and they're all really friendly,"

" _Good, good. What time is it with you?_ "

"Just after six... in the evening," I added.

" _Oh, we're just about to have lunch here,_ "

We chatted for a good while, it felt strange, knowing that I couldn't just pop over to my parent's house and say hi anymore. It made me feel a little homesick.

"I've got to go, mum; I'm meeting some people for dinner."

" _Oh ok, I'll talk to you soon. Bye sweetie._ "

"Bye mum, love you!"

I hung up and began to search for something to wear tonight, before I got all teary-eyed. I found a light green summer dress in my case and changed into it. It had been strange packing my summer clothes before I left, even though it was November, and it was almost mid-winter back home, it was summer here! I brushed out my hair and straightened it, before putting on a little makeup. I examined my teeth, making sure that no traces of my 'tooth mud' stuff had been left behind. I slipped on a pair of high heeled sandals and looked at myself in the mirror. I didn't look too casual, or too formal, which I supposed was appropriate. I jumped a little as someone knocked on my door. I walked over and opened it to find Viggo standing in the hall.

"Hi," I smiled.

"Hey, ready to go?" he said in his soft American accent. I noticed he was wearing a shirt and jeans, I was glad that I wouldn't be the only person who was slightly casually dressed.

"Yep!" I grinned, feeling my stomach flutter with excitement. I was going to meet the rest of the cast!

I closed the door behind me and followed Viggo downstairs and into the dining room where a large group of people were taking their seats around a long table. Viggo walked up to them and pulled out a chair for me.

"Thanks," I mumbled as he sat down. He was such a gentleman!

"Hey, Ki!"

I looked around to see Billy sitting beside me, with Dominic on his other wide.

"Hiya!" I smiled.

"Did you have a good day?" he asked.

"Yeah, everything's been great!" I grinned.

"Hi Kira!" I looked up and noticed Orlando sitting opposite me with a pretty dark haired woman sitting beside him. "This is Liv Tyler." He smiled, introducing me to the woman. "She's playing Arwen."

"Hi," I smiled, shaking her hand from across the table.

"Nice to meet you!" she said in a friendly tone.

"And this is Sean Bean," Orlando continued, gesturing to the man sitting beside him. "He's playing Boromir."

"Hey," he said in a friendly British accent as I shook his hand.

"Hi," I smiled, feeling surprised at the amount of British actors that were in the movie.

"Hey, Pete!" I heard Elijah call from the other side of the table as Peter Jackson walked into the busy dining room, still in his shorts and t-shirt. He smiled and greeted all of us, and introduced me to a few more cast members, including Sean Astin - who was playing Sam, John Rhys-Davies, who was Gimli, Hugo Weaving was Elrond (Peter said I would be doing my first scenes with him tomorrow) and of course Ian McKellen, who was starring as Gandalf. I also got to meet two of the screenplay writers, Fran Walsh (who was also Peter's partner) and Philippa Boyens.

As we settled down to dinner, I heard Peter clear his throat and raise his glass.

"To the finally complete Fellowship!" he toasted, giving me a wink.

"Here here!" shouted the slightly intoxicated Billy and Dom as I tried to hide my blush.

I managed to chat with pretty much everyone throughout the course of the meal, and at the end of it, Peter stood to say goodnight to us.

"Night everyone, see you on set in the morning. Be there at 6am sharp! 5am for the Hobbits!"

There was a resounding groan from Elijah, Sean, Dom and Billy as Peter laughed and waked off with Fran and Philippa - Viggo said they were off to make edits to the script. After a while of talking to several people, I started to yawn and decided to head to bed. As I stood Viggo looked up at me.

"Are you going?"

"Yeah, the jetlag's hitting me like a brick to the head," I mumbled.

"I'll head up too, I'm pretty tired," he smiled standing as I said goodnight to a few people and then followed him out the door.

"So, are you nervous about your first scenes tomorrow?" Viggo asked as we stepped into the elevator.

"A little," I yawned, "I'll probably start freaking out tomorrow though... If I'm awake enough."

Viggo laughed a little as the doors opened and we walked to my room.

"Do you want me to drive you to the set tomorrow?" he asked as I unlocked the door.

"Yeah, that would be great, thanks," I smiled.

"Alright, I'll see you at five then, remember to set your alarm!" he grinned as I grimaced. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight," I smiled, slipping into my room and closing the door behind me. I quickly set the alarm on my phone and changed into my pyjamas, slumping into bed and pulling the duvet over myself.

My first day in New Zealand had been a blast; I couldn't wait to see what the next year or two had in store!

 

***

 

An irritating buzzing sound violently dragged me out of my blissful sleep. I slammed my phone to try and get it to shut up, but it fell off my bedside table and continued to whine at me. I groaned and sat up, turning on the light as it was still dark outside and looked at the time - half four - before staggering to the bathroom. I was definitely  _not_ a morning person.

I turned on the water for the shower and stepped out of my pyjamas, before standing under the torrent of water and slowly beginning to wake up. I rubbed my face furiously, trying to stop myself from dozing off on my feet, before washing my hair and then shutting off the water. I wrapped myself in a towel and brushed my teeth vigorously, still trying to kick my brain into action. I stumbled back into my room and dressed in jeans, a t-shirt and a light blue checked shirt, before drying my hair messily with a towel and tugging a brush through it. As I quickly smudged a little eyeliner over my eyelids, I heard a knock on my door.

"Coming..." I groaned, snatching up my script, phone and keys and walked to the door, switching off the light as I went.

"Good morning," Viggo smiled as I opened the door.

"Mrrrph..." I moaned shutting the door and tramping towards the elevator.

"Not a morning person, then?" he laughed.

"Not in the slightest," I answered, violently hitting the button to call the elevator and stepping inside as the doors 'binged' open in an annoyingly cheerful manner.

"Wait! Hold the doors!"

I glanced up to see a half-awake Orlando dashing down the hallway towards us, with a half unbuttoned shirt and a toothbrush jammed in his mouth.

"Good morning," Viggo and I said simultaneously as he joined us in the cramped space and the doors closed.

"I slept in," Orlando mumbled through the toothbrush.

"Well done," I mumbled sarcastically as the doors 'binged' open again. Could someone  _please_ tell that elevator that it's too early in the morning to be cheerful?

When we got out to the car park, I noticed Liv standing by a car; she tapped her watch over-dramatically as she spotted Orlando.

"I drive her everywhere," Orlando explained, dashing towards her. "See you in makeup!" he called over his shoulder.

"So you all have cars here?" I asked as Viggo unlocked his Jeep.

"Most of us rented them. It just makes it easier to get around." He explained as we clambered in. I nodded and leant back against the headrest and closed my eyes as Viggo started the engine. I was only resting them...

 

"Hey Kira? Ki?"

I moaned a little as Viggo gently shook me awake.

"You fell asleep," he smiled as I looked at him in confusion. "We're here anyway."

"Oh..." I mumbled, blushing a little. "Sorry about that."

"It's fine, you're probably still jetlagged," he murmured, getting out and walking around to my door and opening it for me.

"Thanks," I mumbled in a daze as he helped me out of the car. We wandered over to our makeup trailer and found Orlando, Liv and Sean already in their chairs.

"You're late," Orlando grinned as one of the makeup guys started attaching his ears.

"Psh... like you're one to talk," I muttered, slumping down in my chair as Viggo laughed.

"She fell asleep in the car," he explained. There was a resounding 'aw' from most of the people in the trailer as I mock-scowled.

"Morning, Lou," I mumbled as she walked up to me.

"Good morning!" she smiled, already pinning back my hair and handing me my contacts. I popped them in and blinked hard.

"Don't worry about catching up on your sleep," Sean said from where he sat as he was having his wig attached. "You can just nape between scenes!"

"That's what Elijah does anyway!" Orlando grinned. "He can fall asleep anywhere!"

As soon as I was done in makeup (I got out faster than most of the others because I didn't have any prosthetic) I headed over to the wardrobe trailer to change. I didn't feel too safe hauling a  _real_ sword around, but I supposed I would learn how to use it soon enough. As I was just re-entering the car park, Peter found me.

"Good morning, Kira!" He called. "Come on, we need to get you on set for your first scenes with Hugo!"

"Alright," I sighed, following him into the forest towards the set.


	4. Scenes and Swordfights

**The Making Of...**

**Chapter Four: Scenes and Swordfights**

 

"Right," Peter began as we made our way onto the set. "We're going to film you walking through the archway here, into the courtyard," he pointed to the 'stone' archway that marked the entrance. "And then Hugo is going to come up to you and you will say-"

"Suilad, hir Elrond," I replied with my elvish line that I had looked over while I was in makeup. "And I 'bow respectfully'." I smiled, quoting the command from the script.

"Yep, and then blah, blah, blah, you hug Hugo, and then blah, blah, blah you walk off and that' the scene done!" Pete smiled and I nodded as Hugo walked up to us in an amazing Elrond costume.

"Ready to go?" he smiled.

"Erm... yeah, I guess so," I mumbled, suddenly feeling nervous.

"Right, so go stand outside the entrance, where that camera is, and we'll do a quick rehearsal,"

Peter talked Hugo and I through the movements of the scene, and after coaching us through a rehearsal, the cameras started rolling.

"And... action!" he shouted from his director's chair.

I walked through the archway, conscious of the camera filming me from behind, and the other two in the courtyard. I looked around, like it had said in the script, feeling myself slip into character and allowing myself to behave as Rana would. I looked to where Hugo was now walking towards me and smiled.

"Suilaid, hir Elrond," I murmured, bowing, just like we had rehearsed.

"Le suilon, Rana," he said, I waited for Hugo to tilt my chin upwards. As he did I looked up at him and smiled, before throwing my arms around his neck and hugging him tightly.

"It had been too long, I'm glad to be back," I sighed, acting joyful as I pulled back.

"I am glad also; you have been missed these past few years," Hugo replied in perfect character.

"I must ask, why did you summon me here?" I asked, arching my eyebrows curiously.

"All will become clear soon," Hugo murmured in a mysterious tone. "For now, you should rest. You will find your room and all your possessions exactly how to left them."

"Hannon le, but I would rather take a short walk, I have missed these woods,"

I looked around as I said the line, to re-enforce the point.

"As you wish, for now, Namárië," Hugo murmured, walking out of shot.

"Farewhell," I whispered, then turned to look around the courtyard, and directed my gaze at a small stone bench that would play a part in the next scene, a flashback to when Rana and Aragorn first met.

"Cut!" Peter yelled and I looked up. "That was great! Can we do it once more, just to be sure?"

Six takes later, I realised that Peter could be very specific at times, and if he said 'once more', he usually meant a lot more takes.

"Cut!" He shouted again. "Fantastic guys, that's all for this scene, go grab some lunch and I'll see you later."

I hadn't realised that it was lunchtime already; the time had just flown by.

"Great acting," Hugo smiled as he approached me.

"Thanks, you were brilliant!" I grinned shyly. "I was getting a little worried that we had to do so many takes though..."

"Oh, that was nothing; I had to do twelve takes earlier in the week, it's just Pete's way of doing things." He said comfortingly.

"That's a relief then!" I smiled as we walked off-set and I looked up to see Viggo and Sean Bean standing behind a camera. "I'll catch up with you later Hugo!" I said, jogging over to them.

"Hey," Viggo smiled. "We saw your last few takes, you were awesome!"

"Yeah, great work!" Sean grinned, giving my back a playful thump.

"Thanks guys," I blushed, shuffling from foot to foot awkwardly as they complimented me.

"Here, we brought you some lunch," Viggo said, handing me a sandwich and a thermos cup of coffee.

"Thanks!" I smiled gratefully. "I didn't manage to get any breakfast."

"But that's the most important meal of the day!" Sean gasped in mock-horror as I bit into my sandwich and grinned.

"Hey Sean!" Peter yelled from across the set. "We have the horses all ready here; we're going to do your entrance scene!"

"Ok!" Sean replied. "See you guys later!" He smiled, jogging towards where Pete and a few other people stood with a large bay horse.

"How come we don't get to ride any horses until the second movie?" I grumbled, sitting down on a nearby chair.

"Do you ride?" Viggo asked, sitting down beside me as I sipped my coffee.

"Yeah," I nodded. "I always wanted my own horse, but I could never afford one. I've loaned them before, but it's not really the same."

"Yeah, I have a few back home," he murmured as we watched Sean mount the horse and ride it through the entrance over and over again until Peter was happy. As they finished the scene, Peter walked over to us.

"Viggo, we need you to do a few scenes with the Hobbit guys, but you're free for the rest of the day Kira, you're both off from filming tomorrow too."

"Really? Thanks Pete!" I smiled.

"Don't thank me yet, you both missed your weapon's training, you need to catch up on that! So you need to be here early tomorrow morning, and then I'll give you the directions to the training grounds." Peter smirked.

I spent the rest of the day watching Viggo film scenes in the forest outside the Rivendell set with Elijah, Billy, Dom and Sean Astin (It was getting a little confusing with two Sean's on set!). It was interesting seeing them all in character - I had no idea that any of the 'Hobbits' could be so cute! And Viggo was in 'mysterious-Strider-mode' which I was curious about, as I would never really get to act with him as 'Strider'.

By the end of the day I was thoroughly exhausted, and had probably consumed too much coffee to keep myself awake, so I tramped back to the trailer to get my makeup off. Sean, Orlando and Liv had already gone back to the hotel and had all offered me lifts back (except for Liv, who didn't have a car), but I wanted to stay and watch the acting and become accustomed to the set. Just as I was brushing my teeth to get the 'mud' off them, Viggo walked in and we sat and chatted with our makeup artists, before heading over to wardrobe to leave our costumes off, and then getting back into the car and heading back to the hotel.

"See you in the morning then," Viggo smiled as we once again found ourselves outside my door.

"Yeah, okay, no chance of a lie-in then?" I asked.

"Well..." Viggo paused, pretending to be in deep thought, "I suppose we could sneak an extra hour in bed..."

"Thanks," I grinned. "I really need it!"

"Same, see you tomorrow," he said as I opened the door.

"Bye," I murmured, closing the door and finding the room's phone so I could dial for room service.

I tried to get to bed as early as possible that night, so I wouldn't be half-dead in the morning, so I dozed off after finishing texting a few people from back home.

 

***

 

The next day, I found myself once again sitting in the passenger seat of Viggo's Jeep on our way to the Rivendell set at some ungodly hour of the morning.

As we pulled up in the car park, we saw that Peter was already standing waiting for us.

"Morning!" I smiled, clambering out of the car.

"Hey guys, ready to go fight some stuntmen?" Pete grinned, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his shorts.

"Not in the slightest," Viggo smirked. "So where are you sending us?"

"Go grab your swords and I'll give you a map," he said, waving us towards the wardrobe trailer. Viggo and I walked over and opened the door to find four 'Hobbits' trying to change while eating their breakfast. Thankfully, they were all decent as we walked in.

"Morning guys!" Elijah smiled through his mouthful of toast.

"Hi," I murmured, squeezing past him to get my sword. "Do you think we should wear our boots too? So we can get used to wearing them?" I asked Viggo.

"Good idea," he smiled, picking up his own sword and boots.

"Where are you going?" Billy asked as we headed for the door.

"Stunt training," Viggo answered.

"Have a good time!" Sean called from the back of the trailer.

"Try not to get killed!" Dom grinned as I rolled my eyes.

"Thanks, see you later!" I waved as we exited and went to find Peter.

We found him leaning against Viggo's car, clutching a map.

"Right," he began, "this is your map, and I've written down the directions here." He handed me the map and a scrap of paper that was covered in scribbles. "Your heading for an army base, the stunt guys are your trainer will already be there. Good luck and I'll see you later!"

"Bye," I smiled as he jogged off and we got back into the car.

"Off we go then," Viggo grinned as he started the engine and drove off.


	5. Scary Stuntmen

**The Making Of...**

**Chapter Five: Scary Stuntmen**

 

After some mild confusion caused by Peter's hastily scribbled directions and an out-of-date map, Viggo and I finally found ourselves pulling outside a large collection of buildings and a large sign that said 'Army Barracks'.

"Well, here we are," he smiled, stepping out of the car and fetching his sword from the back seat. I hopped out after him and opened the back door, collecting my sheathed sword and tucking my boots under my arm. We walked up to one of the single-story buildings that looked a lot like a gym and found a small group of men standing outside, some of them smoking, others chatting.

"You guys here for the weapons training?" one of the tall, muscular men asked, breaking off from his conversation.

"Uh yeah..." I replied a little nervously, suddenly feeling very small.

"Just head inside, Bob is waiting for you with the others," he grunted, jamming his thumb over his shoulder towards the door. I cast an anxious glance towards Viggo before pushing it open and walking into the cool, air-conditioned gym.

There were blue mats littering the ground, and at one side of the room, a group of about eleven stuntmen and women were standing, all holding crude, Orc-like blades.

"Hi guys!"

I turned to see a man with thinning white hair that looked to be in his late fifties approach us.

"Hey, I'm Bob Anderson. I'm going to be choreographing your fights and training you," he smiled, shaking my hand with a firm, calloused grip.

"Hi, I'm Kira," I replied, then he shook Viggo's hand.

"I'm Viggo," he smiled as Bob stood back and looked us up and down.

"Right, change into your boots, and we'll get started," he said, clapping his hands together and walking towards the stunt people. I shrugged at Viggo as we walked over to a bench and changed into our boots. I pulled off the hoodie I'd been wearing so I was just in my sweatpants and t-shirt, and my boots, I then belted the sheath of my sword to my waist after seeing Viggo do the same, and followed him to the side of the hall opposite the stunt guys.

"Draw your swords," Bob called out and I grasped the hilt, sweeping it out of the sheath in one easy movement. It surprised me how  _real_ the sword felt, now that I was holding it. Out of the corner of my eye I could see that Viggo had done the same, and then I glanced at the group of people standing opposite us. They were literally trembling with anticipation, grasping their weapons. Most of them were huge, muscular guys. I'd done a little self defence before, but I didn't really stand a chance with them unless I had some training. Suddenly, Bob said 'Go,' and they came running towards us, yelling and growling!

' _What am I supposed to do?_ ' I thought to myself in panic as they got closer and I tightened my grip on my sword. I sensed Viggo tense up beside me, were we supposed to fight back? I had a strong urge to leg it in the opposite direction, but I stood firm, if a little terrified, as they were now a few feet away from us.

Suddenly, Bob clapped his hands once, and they stopped, just inches away from us.

"Right, let's get down to business then," he smiled as the stunt guys backed off in fits of laughter.

"What was  _that_?" I whispered to Viggo through clenched teeth.

"I think he was trying to show us what the next few hours are going to be like," he replied with a nervous smile. "I was seriously considering legging it though!"

I laughed as I realised that we had been thinking the same thing, as Bob approached us.

"Okay, first we're just going to teach you the basics, and then we'll sort out things like signature moves, and then we can move on to figuring out a fight scene or two," Bob grinned; obviously pleased with the fright he had given us.

 

Over the next few hours, Viggo and I were coached by Bob and the various stuntmen and women through separate fights. It was handy that we would be fighting the same people when it came to filming the scene, only we would both be in costume. Eventually, we seemed to have mastered the basics, and Bob asked Viggo and I to go stand in the centre of the room.

"Right, we're going to be working on a combined fight scene now, I think this one is going to be used for the Amon Hen scene," he began. "Basically, we're going to have you two fighting side by side, and it's mean to work 'harmoniously'  - as Peter described it to me!" He added with a wink. "Let's get to work!"

Viggo and I were positioned in the centre of a ring of 'Orcs' back to back, and Bob coached us from a distance as we were 'attacked'. I was blocking a blow that one of the stuntmen threw at me, when I heard Bob yell to Viggo. Before I knew it, he had grabbed my wrist and spun me around so I was now by his side.

"Wow..." I gasped breathlessly as I 'stabbed' a stuntwoman who convincingly died at my feet.

"Watch your back!" Bob called and I automatically ducked and turned to 'cut off' the legs of my attacker. I stood to find another one advancing upon me.

"Pause!" Bob shouted above the battle cries. "Kira, do you think you could flip him over your shoulder?" he asked, pointing to the stuntman - Jake - that had been about to attack me.

"Erm..." I mumbled, stopping to catch my breath. "I suppose so; I haven't done anything like that in years though..."

"You'll be fine," Bob smiled, "just duck and he'll fall onto your back, and then you just stand up and make it look like you're throwing him. Jake will do most of the work."

"Yeah, I'll give it a go," I grinned.

"Alright, as soon as Jake hits the ground, Viggo, you turn and stab him," Bob instructed.

"Sure," Viggo smiled, as I bit my lip nervously.

"Right, go!" Bob shouted. Jake ran at me full-speed and I ducked, ramming my shoulders into his legs as he toppled onto my back and I stood up quickly, flipping him onto the floor, where he landed on his back and Viggo 'stabbed' him in the chest.

"I can't believe I pulled that off!" I laughed as Jake scrambled to his feet.

"Great work guys, all we have to do is work out Viggo's 'Weathertop' fight scene," Bob said, walking over to us. "And then we can call it a day."

"Alright," I nodded, still grinning my head off as I went and sat down on the bench where we had left our stuff earlier. I took a water bottle out of my bag and drank thirstily whilst Bob was talking Viggo through the scene where he would fight the Nazgûl. I sat down and watched whilst the taller stuntmen who would be the Black Riders all pretended to be surrounding an injured Frodo, all wielding blades that were different from the Orc ones. Viggo jumped in from the side and I watched as Bob coached him through the battle. He had been given what was supposed to be a flaming torch to wield alongside his sword, but in reality it was just a piece of rubber piping, apparently he would be given something more real on set. I watched in amazement as he fought them off single-handed, it seemed so  _real_.

"That's great, Viggo; try to remember that for a few days, so we don't have to rehearse it too much on set," Bob smiled as the stuntmen and women moved off to what I assumed was a changing room. "Well done you two, you've worked hard."

"Thanks," I smiled, pulling off my now slightly sweaty boots (lovely) and slipping on a pair of flip-flops that I'd brought.

"I'll be around set most of the time if you need any help, see you guys later!" Bob smiled, waving as he walked off to the changing rooms.

"Shall we then?" Viggo asked, sheathing his sword at his side and shouldering his bag.

"Are you just gonna wear your sword?" I asked, about to unbuckle my own.

"Yeah, why not?" he asked, I shrugged and re-adjusted my sheathed sword at my side.

"Alright then!" I grinned, swinging my bag onto my back and following him out of the door into the still-bright sunshine. "This is so different from all the cold weather back home..." I mumbled as we walked to the car.

"Yeah," Viggo agreed. "It's going to be weird, not having a cold Christmas."

I nodded in agreement and threw my bag into the back seat, before unbuckling my sheath and laying it down carefully whilst Viggo did the same.

As we were driving away from the army barracks, my phone buzzed in my pocket. I checked the message, seeing it was from Peter.

' _Hey, make sure you've on set early tomorrow for your first scene with Viggo! P.J._ '


	6. That's Not a Cave...

**The Making Of...**

**Chapter Six: That's Not a Cave...**

 

I woke up reluctantly on the morning after my stunt training, called back to consciousness by the repeated buzzing of my alarm.

"I swear this can't be good for my sanity..." I mumbled, looking at the time. "Yeah, no normal person wakes up at half four... and I'm already talking to myself..." I groaned, ignoring the temptation to collapse back onto the pillow and dragging myself into the shower.

Half an hour later, I was washed and changed into a comfy green hoodie and jeans, just as Viggo knocked on the door.

"Coming!" I yelled, grabbing my script from where I had been reading it on the bed and my sword from the corner and dashing over to the door. "Hi," I smiled as I saw Viggo.

"Ready to go?" he asked.

"Yep!" I grinned cheerfully, trying to hide my nervousness as I closed the door and started walking down the hallway. I had been awake for most of the night, agonising over the fact that I was doing my first scene with Viggo. What if he didn't think I was a good actress? Or what if I screwed up? I wasn't even sure why I was so anxious, I hadn't been this nervous about my first scene with Hugo... I was abruptly jerked back to reality by Viggo waving his hand in front of my face.

"Hello?" he asked. "If you don't hurry up, the elevator doors are going to close."

"Oh, sorry, I spaced out," I mumbled, hurrying through the reception into the car park. We clambered into the car and I put my sword into the back seat alongside Viggo's before we pulled off.

As we climbed the steps into the makeup trailer after we had arrived, I found Lou and Kevin - our two makeup artists chatting.

"Is no one else here yet?" I asked, sitting down in my chair.

"They all have the day off," Lou explained, as she and Kevin started working on us.

"Why do you need to wear those?" Viggo asked as I popped in my contact lenses.

"Have you not read the books?" I laughed.

"Of course I have,"

"Well you should know that Rana has green eyes, but I don't," I cast a glance in his direction before looking back at the mirror. "And Aragorn has grey eyes, but I suppose you're close enough." I said as he blinked his steely blue eyes and laughed.

"Great, because those contacts don't look comfortable!"

"Believe me, they're not," I muttered as Lou started pinning in my extensions and straightening them along with my hair.

After we had finished in makeup and had changed into our costumes, Viggo and I made our way towards the set, which was virtually deserted apart from a few camera crews.

"Hi guys!" Peter called from across the set, jogging towards us in his trademark shorts. "Everyone had either the day off or is filming elsewhere, because we only have a few more days left on this set." He explained. "All ready to go then?"

"Yeah, where are we filming?" Viggo asked.

"Come over here," Peter said, gesturing for us to follow him as he walked across the set. "We're filming the scene where Rana and Aragorn are reunited in the cave."

"The cave? I thought we would be doing that down in Weta," Viggo wondered, referring to the special effects team based in Wellington that was behind the movie. I had also though that we would be working in a model in a warehouse or in front of a green screen.

"No, we've set up a model here, because the waterfall works with the systems we already have set up," Peter explained, leading us behind the Rivendell buildings and towards a strange grey structure that looked like rock, but open closer inspection it appeared to be the cave under the waterfall, except it looked like it had been sliced down the middle, so there was only half a cave, with a small waterfall tumbling over one side. "We wouldn't have had room to film in a real cave." Peter said, picking up a script from a chair. "Right, Ki, we're going to have a shot of you walking up to the waterfall, and then you jump through it and land in the cave behind it, alright?"

"Yeah, sure," I smiled, adjusting my cloak and walking over.

"Let's try to get this done quickly," Pete mumbled, sitting down in his chair and waving to the camera men as they positioned the camera outside the 'cave' in a way that made it look like it was a full structure. I had a final quick read-through of this part of the scene in my script, before giving Peter a nod.

"Action!" He yelled as I walked out from amongst a few trees and stopped beside the falling water, reaching out to let my fingertips pass through it and smiling, just like it had said in the script, before counting to three under my breath and jumping through the water into the 'cave'. I land on the fake stone floor just as Peter yelled 'cut'.

"Ack! That water's so cold!" I cried, jumping up and down as a droplet seeped through my costume and ran down my back. "Ugh... that's nasty..." I groaned.

"Don't worry; you don't have to do it again!" Peter called from where he had been watching the replay. "We'll stick with that take. Now we'll film you walking through the cave and then throw Viggo in there."

"Alright," I smiled, tousling my damp hair a little and walking back to the 'entrance' of the 'cave' and positioning myself as if I''d just leapt through the waterfall.

"And... action!" Peter cried and I stood from my half crouch and walked slowly along the wall of fake rock, railing my fingers over the moist, glistening surface. It was supposed to be cold in the cave, but I was practically melting under the floodlights that were being used. I made my way to where the back of the cave was and stopped, slipping into a sad, nostalgic mood at the point where Rana would be thinking about Aragorn. Little did she know that he was about to come barrelling through the waterfall! someone very deliberately snapped a stick somewhere behind me and I turned quickly, taking a half-step towards the water with a confused expression.

"Cut!" shouted Peter. "Hold that position, Ki, we'll get Viggo in now!" He instructed me as I froze. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Viggo position himself outside the 'waterfall' and Peter rush around him, giving him last minute instructions. "Action!" he yelled after scurrying back to his chair. I took another hesitant step forward and then stepped back in alarm as Viggo leapt through the water and slowly stood. I looked at him with an amazed expression, missed with confusion and shock.

"Aragorn?" I whispered.

"Rana..." Viggo murmured as we both smiled a little.

"Cut!" Peter shouted. "Right guys, no we haven't written much about your reunion in the script, just that you hug, but it should be really impulsive, and should seem like you really haven't seen each other for years, so just work something out between the two of you... and be impulsive!" he smiled and I raised an eyebrow nervously; I loved on the spot improvisation, but I had never had to collaborate with someone on it.

"Action!" Peter yelled, not even giving Viggo and myself a chance to work something out.

I stared at him for a moment and he smiled, holding his arms out. I grinned and ran into his arms, hugging him tightly. He laughed a little and suddenly lifted me by my waist and spun me around in the small space. I couldn't help laughing as he set me on my feet and hugged me again.

"Im gelir ceni ad lín," I murmured softly the line that mean 'I'm happy to see you again', before pulling back and gazing into Viggo''s eyes. "I missed you." I added.

"I missed you also," he replied, and I noticed that his accent had almost gone as he slipped into character. He hugged me again unexpectedly, but I just went with it and relaxed into his embrace. "There was never a day when you were not in my thoughts," he murmured into my shoulder.

"Cut!" Peter shouted, jerking me back to reality. "That was brilliant guys! Nice work with the lift Viggo!" he cried, grinning from ear to ear. I blushed a little as I untangled myself from Viggo's arms. "I don't think we need to do another take." Peter smiled from where he was watching the replay, "I like how it's so impulsive!"

"Well, that's what you told us to be!" I laughed. "Do we have any other scenes to do today?"

"Just a scene where you're walking through the forest and Aragorn is explaining to Rana about the Ring and how it came to Rivendell," Pete replied. "But you can go get lunch now." He smiled waving us off. As we walked away, I heard him telling the crew members to start taking down the 'cave'. It always amazed me that something that looked so real, and appeared to have been sitting in a certain spot forever, could just be taken apart.

"Those were some pretty great takes," Viggo murmured softly as we ducked our way through the Rivendell set to where some people were setting up a small lunch table.

"Thanks," I smiled, feeling my cheeks redden at the compliment. "Most of it was down to you though; I wasn't expecting you to lift me at all!" I grinned as we lifted some sandwiches from the table and went to sit down on some of the Rivendell steps.

"Well I suppose that's what I would do if I was seeing my best friend for the first time in years," he replied, taking a bite of his sandwich.

"I guess so," I mumbled, looking around at the set. "It's so weird that all this will be gone in a few days." I sighed.

"Yeah, I think we only have a day or two left filming here. Hugo and Liv will probably hang around for a few days; I think they have a few extra shots to do."

"Where are we going next then?" I asked curiously.

"I don't know really," Viggo smiled. "I think I have to go do my Weathertop scene with Elijah, Sean, Billy and Dom, I'm not sure where we're off to next."

"I see," I murmured, finishing my sandwich as Peter walked past, chugging a cup of caffeine, Pete!" I laughed as he turned to us.

"Oh, it's you two," he grinned. "Want to go do those forest shots?"

"Yeah, sure," Viggo smiled, standing and holding out his hand to help me to my feet.

"Thanks," I mumbled, blushing as we walked a little way into the forest, where a small path had been set up beneath the trees and was lined with a few cameras and lights.


	7. Goodbye to Rivendell

**The Making Of...**

**Chapter Seven: Goodbye to Rivendell**

 

Viggo and I talked our way through the forest scene in front of Peter as a rehearsal, and then walked along the path together once the cameras started rolling. After Peter yelled 'Cut' for the fourth time, I began to think that I was doing something wrong.

"Something isn't quite right..." Pete mumbled half to himself.

"Is it something I'm doing?" I asked, feeling my paranoia reside as he shook his head.

"No... it's not that... it just seems like there's no... sign of intimacy between you two." He finished, seeming to finally figure what was off about the scene.

"I thought Rana and Aragorn weren't supposed to fall in love until the third movie?" Viggo asked, sounding puzzled.

"Yes, but you're very close friends," Peter mumbled, walking up to us and standing in front of us. "Viggo, try putting your arm around Kira's shoulders." He said, frowning in concentration.

I leant a little against Viggo's side as he wrapped one arm around my shoulders and looked at Peter, who shook his head. "No, that's not right... try your arm around her waist, you do the same, Ki." I couldn't hold back my slight blush this time as Viggo's arm curled around my waist and I wrapped my own around his. "No, that just looks awkward," Pete said after a moment.

"Why don't we just hold hands?" Viggo suggested, releasing my waist and linking his fingers through mine. Peter nodded a little.

"Yeah, let's try that," he said, jogging back to his chair. As the cameras started rolling again and we walked down the path, talking through the scene, I saw out of the corner of my eye that Peter was nodding in approval.

"Cut!" He yelled. "That was great guys! That's all for today!" He smiled and I looked at Viggo with a grin, we practically had the afternoon off! We said goodbye to Peter and the crew and began to walk back to the trailers. As we walked into the car park, I noticed with startling realisation that I was still holding Viggo's hand!

"Sorry..." I mumbled, letting my fingers slip away from his.

"It's alright." He smiled. "I didn't notice until now!"

I blushed a little and laughed along with him; holding his hand had felt so natural that I barely knew I was doing it! I explained it to myself by saying that I was still in character, but there was something niggling at the back of my mind that I couldn't put my finger on...

 

***

 

The next day we were back on set, along with the rest of the Fellowship, including Hugo and Liv. We were filming the scene where the Fellowship leave Rivendell to go on their quest. The pony that was going to be playing Bill had arrived and I was busy making a fuss over him whilst Elijah, Sean, Dom and Billy were kneeling on the ground, trying to work out a camera trick so they would look short. This was going to be my first scene with anyone apart from Viggo and Hugo, so I was naturally a little nervous. It would also be the only scene where the whole Fellowship was together on the Rivendell set, as the council scene would be filmed in a studio.

"Right guys, we're ready to start!" Peter announced. "Let's give it a quick run-through first!"

I gave the pony a quick scratch on the forehead and jogged towards where Peter and Hugo were standing behind the camera, as we would be entering the shot from that direction. We rehearsed the scene twice, and then when I was once again in position, Peter yelled 'Action'.

I walked down the Rivendell steps behind the camera and walked into shot, to take my place with the rest of the Fellowship, who were standing before the stone arch. I then looked up, along with everyone else to see Hugo walking towards us.

"The Ringbearer is setting out on the Quest of Mount Doom. On you who travel with him, no oath nor bond is laid to go further than you will. Farewell. Hold to your purpose. May the blessings of Elves and Men and all the free folk go with you," he said solemnly, addressing the ten people who stood before him. I nodded my head a little as Ian spoke from behind me.

"The Fellowship awaits the Ring Bearer,"

"Cut!" Peter yelled. "Great guys, now can we take the shot of Aragorn and Rana looking back at Rivendell?"

Everyone except Viggo and I either vacated the area, or positioned themselves to look like they were walking out the gate. I looked up at the Rivendell buildings as Peter shouted 'Action'. I sighed sadly and then felt Viggo's hand rest on my shoulder. I lifted my own hand and placed it over his, squeezing it a little, before looking away from Rivendell and letting my hand slip away from his. We then walked out of the archway just as Peter ended the scene.

"Fantastic guys, now can we do the exiting scene from a different angle?"

We patiently went through the scene from various angles, and halfway through the shoot, Liv appeared with a few extras, dressed as elves. While Peter was taking a few shots of them, I sat and properly woke myself up with a cup of coffee, with Viggo, Sean, Billy and Dom. Sean Astin and Elijah had gone to shoot a few scenes in 'Frodo's Bedroom', one of the only indoor areas of the set. Viggo and I would be up there later with Pete.

"So I hear we're off to the Weathertop set tomorrow," Billy said in a cheerful tone. "What are you guys going to be doing?"

"I'm going to be there with you," Viggo replied.

"I have the day off," Sean mumbled.

"I have no idea," I answered truthfully. "I'd love to come with you, but I suspect that Pete will have something lined up for me." I smiled, leaning back in my chair and watching as Peter coached Liv through the cold gaze she was supposed to be firing at Rana.

Arwen was supposed to be jealous of Rana's relationship with Aragorn, but in reality, Liv was so sweet tempered! I almost laughed at how out-of-character she looked as she glared at the camera. I curled my knees up to my chest and sipped my coffee for a moment, and suddenly I was blinded by a flash of light. I looked around in confusion and saw Viggo holding a camera.

"Sorry," he smiled apologetically. "It's just you were in such a nice pose."

"Oh..." I mumbled in embarrassment. "Do you like photography?"

"Don't get him started!" Billy and Dom shouted in unison and I looked at them curiously.

"Viggo... is an artist," Sean explain, using a dramatic tone.

"Shut up, Sean," Viggo smiled.

"He's a photographer, a painter, a poet, a musician... the list goes on and on..." Sean rambled as Viggo tossed his empty cup at him and leant back in his chair, seeming nonchalant, but I thought I detected a faint blush on his cheeks.

"Wow..." I murmured, suddenly feeling creatively dwarfed. I loved music, and played my guitar whenever I had the time, and I drew a little, and of course I was always taking photos... but  _wow_.

"It's nothing, really..." Viggo mumbled.

"Psh, you seemed eager enough to tell us about it!" Billy laughed.

"That's because you asked, and I thought you would listen," Viggo replied in a passive tone.

"I would listen," I murmured quietly, blushing as he turned and smiled at me. My cheeks flushed an ever deeper red as our eyes locked and I found myself lost in his stormy gaze.

"Kira?"

I looked up at the sound of Peter's voice, calling me from across the set. I looked back at Viggo a little regretfully and shrugged, standing and jogging over to Peter.

"Hey Pete," I smiled, "what do you need me for?"

He turned and pointed to a small balcony above our heads. "We need to take a few shots of you up there. It's the scene where you're watching Boromir, Legolas and Gimli arrive."

"Sure," I smiled, "won't we need Viggo for that scene? I thought I was supposed to be having a conversation with him as they arrive."

"We can film that part in the studio; you just have to say your lines."

"Okay, how do I get up there then?" I asked.

"You have to climb this ladder," he explained, leading me around the back of the set and pointing to a ladder that led to a hole in the upper level of the set.

"Alright," I smiled, beginning to climb. "See you in a moment!"

I hauled myself onto the platform and walked over to the intricately designed railings I was supposed to be leaning on. I carefully tested them with my weight, and then casually leant on them as Peter waved to me from below and got a camera positioned. I looked down, realising what a fantastic view I had of the set. I spotted Viggo sitting in his chair so I smiled and waved after I had caught his eye. I flinched and looked away as he lifted his camera; when I looked back he tilted his head, as if to say, 'Please?'

I sighed and looked off into the forest, knowing he was snapping pictures down below. Why did he seem to think I was such an interesting subject? I blushed a little, and then looked back down to Peter, who was about to start the scene.

As the cameras started rolling, I looked towards the entrance to Rivendell, pretending to see Boromir and Legolas riding through the gates.

"Lots of people are arriving," I murmured, imagining that Viggo was sitting behind me, polishing his sword.

"They have been summoned for the council,"

I had expected Pete to be reading Aragorn's lines, but to my surprise I heard Viggo's voice below me. I cast a glance downwards and he fired me a lopsided grin as I continued.

"There was a man from Gondor, and some Elves from Mirkwood have arrived. Legolas was with them."

Viggo answered with a loud grunt, and I pretended to see several dwarves walking into the courtyard below.

"And a group of Dwarves. I have never see a gathering like this before," I said, watching Viggo below.

"The fate of the Ring affects the fate of all the free races of Middle Earth. They will not go without their say," he murmured in response.

We ran through the scene a few more times before Peter was happy. As I cautiously climbed down the ladder, I felt hands on my waist, and before I knew it, I had been lifted free of the ladder and set on the ground.

"Nice scene," Viggo smiled as I looked up at him.

"Thanks," I murmured, smiling awkwardly at the compliment.

"Come on; let's go see what else Pete wants us to do," he smiled, leading me back towards the set.


	8. Was That in the Script?

**The Making Of...**

**Chapter Eight: Was That in the Script?**

 

After we had finished our scenes for the day, Viggo and I began to head back to the makeup trailers. As we were leaving, Peter jogged up to us. I had noticed that he had been intently watching Viggo and I all day, so I figured that this may have something to do with that.

"Hey Viggo! Ki!" he shouted to get out attention.

"Hi Pete," I smiled as he caught up with us. "What's up?"

"I was just wondering if you two could come back later tonight, I think I've had an idea... I'll hae to talk to Fran and Philippa about it, but if we're going to film here, it'll have to be this evening. Can I could on you two to be here?"

"Yeah, sure," Viggo smiled. "We'll be here."

"Fantastic, see you in your trailer at seven then!" He grinned, waving as he jogged back to the set.

"What do you suppose  _that_ was about?" I asked as we strolled back to our trailer.

"No idea," Viggo shrugged. "He's definitely plotting something though."

"Yeah," I agreed as we walked into the trailer and Lou began to remove my makeup.

After a few minutes, I saw Viggo check his watch.

"Hey Ki?"

"Hm?" I answered midway through brushing my teeth.

"It's almost five already, if we have to be back here before seven, there's not much point in going back to the hotel, do you want to just go out and grab a bite?"

"Yeah, sure," I smiled, leaning back in my chair after deciding that there was no point in taking my contact lenses out. I could just have green eyes for the next few hours.

After we had finished in makeup and had changed, Viggo and I headed back to his car, both wielding our swords. Viggo was trying to remember the routine he needed for his fight scene tomorrow.

"Don't be trying to remember whilst driving; I don't want to crash because you were thinking about swords!" I joked as I tossed my sword into the back seat and he did the same.

"Don't worry, I'm sure I'll remember it," he smiled. "Besides, I think Bob will be on set tomorrow anyway." He climbed into the driver's seat and I jumped in the passenger side as he started the engine and pulled off.

"So where are we going?" I asked.

"There's a town just up the road here, I'm sure we can find something to eat there."

 

***

 

Around half an hour later, Viggo and I were sitting outside a pizza restaurant, finishing off our meal in the evening sun. I took out my purse to pay when the waiter arrived with the bill, but Viggo stopped me.

"Don't worry about it," he grinned. "It's my treat."

"Thanks," I smiled, sitting back in my chair and looking around the quiet street. "Hey, look at that!" I cried, pointing at an outdoor magazine rack that stood across the road from us.

"What is it?" Viggo asked as I stood.

"Come on!" I laughed, grabbing his wrist and dragging him across the street as he snatched up his sword (he had insisted upon bringing it to the restaurant). I picked up the movie review magazine, and stared at the title that had caught my eye:

' _Lord of the Rings Final Cast List Revealed!_ '

I quickly flicked through the pages until I found the article. I laughed as I saw the photographs of everyone, from the Hobbits right through to a shot of Peter, sitting in his director's chair - and bam smack in the middle of it all, the picture of Viggo and I, the one where he was hugging me. I blushed a little as he looked over my shoulder and grinned.

"Oh look, we're famous!" he smirked sarcastically as I began to read the article.

"Hey, are you going to buy that?"

I looked up to see the man who was running the stand address us in a heavy New Zealand accent. I quickly paid for the magazine as he stared at us.

"Do I know you two?" he asked, looking puzzled.

"Nope!" I shook my head, quickly closing the magazine. "I'm positive you don't!"

Viggo and I rushed back to the car, holding back our hysterical laughter until the door was safely shut behind us. "He had no idea what was going on!" I giggled as Viggo started the engine.

"Yeah," he grinned. "We should get back, Pete will be wondering where we are."

 

***

 

We pulled up in the car park and saw Peter standing talking with Alexandra, one of the girls who was working in the wardrobe department.

"Hey guys," he grinned as we walked over. "Let's get you into makeup - now! See you later Alex!" he waved to the girl as he pushed us towards our trailer. As we sat down in our chairs, he began instructing Lou and Kevin as to what he wanted. Apparently we were to look 'clean', which was odd as we were supposed to look permanently filthy for most of the movie.

"What's going on?" I asked in confusion as Loud tackled me with her fiendish makeup brush.

"Read this," Pete said, passing Viggo and myself a couple of sheets stapled together, titled 'Rewrites'. I began to read through them, at the top of the first page was the title 'Aragorn's Dream Sequence', but it was the command further down the page that caught my eye and almost sent me into a panic attack.

"Uh... Pete?" I asked in a hoarse voice.

"Hm?"

"I don't remember this scene from the script... or the books," I mumbled, my eyes still locked on the words.

' _Rana kisses Aragorn_.'

"Yeah, that's because it's new," he replied, sounding as if he hadn't just asked me to kiss someone that I'd known for less than a week. It wasn't that I didn't  _want_ to kiss Viggo, but this was totally unexpected! I'd had no time to mentally prepare myself!

"Right, you're all done!" Lou announced, after she had finished pinning some of my hair back into a simple, yet elegant design, whilst leaving some strands framing my face.

"Great! Ki, get yourself over to wardrobe, Alex has an outfit ready for you."

"Um... sure," I murmured, casting a glance at Viggo as he read the rewrite with a raised eyebrow, before hurriedly grabbing a packet of breath-mints from my bag, exiting the trailer and dashing to get my costume. I was wondering what Alex had in store for me as I opened the door and found her laying out a beautiful green dress.

"Oh, hi!" she grinned. "Come and get your dress on!"

 

***

 

"Wow..." I breathed, after I had changed into the dress. It was made of a translucent, light green material that was as sooth as silk, but somehow seemed lighter than that. It reached past my feet, and was sleeveless. It clung to my figure in all the right places and flowed out in others. My only worry was that it was a little revealing, due to its translucency. Would it be see-through under the lights?

"Alex, this is amazing!" I grinned, all thoughts of the kissing scene pushed out of my mind due to the excitement of the dress. However, all these thoughts came flooding back as I heard a knock on the door.

"Hey, can I come in?" Viggo said softly from outside.

"Yep!" Alex chirped, adjusting my dress a little as the door opened and Viggo walked in. I blushed as he stopped in his tracks and stared at me, his mouth slightly open.

"Kira... you look amazing," he breathed, walking towards us.

"Um... thanks," I stammered, nervously brushing a strand of hair out of my eyes as he smiled. Alex handed him an outfit in a plastic bag and sent him behind the curtain to change. After a few minutes he emerged, wearing a dark navy tunic with a subtle silver pattern over a pair of grey trousers. Alex quickly added belts and a few other details, including the beautiful emerald pendant that Rana had given to Aragorn when they were younger.

"Ready to go then?" he smiled, nodding towards the door.

"Sure!" I replied, trying to sound cheerful, but I was aware my voice was shaking a little. I followed him towards the set in the forest.

The sun was just beginning to sink below the horizon as we approached 'Rivendell' and spotted Peter, who waved us over to a small alcove in the set, that contained a long 'chez-lounge' style couch and was illuminated by several lights, that glowed and flickered to imitate candles. Viggo and I sat down on some chairs for a moment to remove our shoes, as Peter had just told us that we were to do the scene barefoot.

"So, how are you with kissing scenes?" Viggo asked quietly.

"Erm... I'm alright I suppose... it depends on who I'm kissing I guess..." I mumbled.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well, let's just say the last guy I had to do a kissing scene with ended up with a black eye," I muttered under my breath as Viggo chuckled quietly.

"What did he do to deserve that?" he asked.

"He tried to stick his tongue down my throat," I answered bluntly. "And he was a total jerk... and a pervert."

"I'll try not to do that then," Viggo smiled, "and I hope you don't think of me as either  a jerk or a pervert."

"No... I don't think that," I reassured him shyly as Peter called us onto the set. A small flight of steps lead to the alcove, which was a circular shape, surrounded by walls made up of intertwining white vines. Pete began to talk us through the context of the scene, saying that at some point during The Two Towers, Aragorn would be on the brink of death - or something close to that - but he would have a dream about Rana, which would motivate him to not give up. It all seemed a little vague to me, but as long as it made sense to Peter... with a sigh I gave my lines a last read through - they were relatively simple, it was the kiss I was worried about. From what the script hinted, it was going to last for quite some time, and would get pretty intimate.

"Ready to go, Ki?" Peter asked as I closed my script. I glanced nervously at Viggo before nodding slightly. I'd had to kiss guys on camera before, why was this any different? I tried to set myself in the right frame of mind as I slipped into character.

' _Okay... you're Rana, you're in Aragorn's dream and you're kissing him because he's in love with you but doesn't have the guts to tell you how he really feels... that makes perfect sense. Not._ '

I shook my head a little to clear my mind and watched as Peter gave Viggo a few last minute tips.

"Now, Aragorn has been in love with her for a while now, but can't bring himself to tell her this, he's probably been dying to kiss her for ages, so once the kiss develops a bit, don't be afraid to take control of it and..."

I tuned out as my heart started doing backflips and I inwardly yelled at myself to calm down as Pete stepped back and I moved into position, waiting for him to shout 'Action'...


	9. A Development

**The Making Of...**

**Chapter Nine: A Development**

 

I watched anxiously as Peter made his way over to his chair and sat down, and then looked up at where Viggo was lying, pretending to be asleep on the couch. There were three cameras scattered around, so we wouldn't have to pause midway through the scene to change the angles... I supposed that was an advantage.

"Action!" Pete shouts and I forced myself into character as I slowly climbed the steps towards Viggo, feeling the floorboards of the set beneath my bare feet. he blinked awake and turned to look at me, smiling slightly. I smiled in return as I leant against one of the pillars that lined the alcove.

"This is a dream..." Viggo murmured and I smiled a little, walking towards him and kneeling down so my face was level with his.

"You should be resting," I whispered, delicately brushing a strand of hair out of his eyes as he momentarily closed them, and letting my fingertips gently trace his jaw line. I leant in a little closer as I did so, waiting for his next line.

"I am resting..." he murmured, closing his eyes slowly as his lips curved into a smile.

"Ssh..." I said softly, placing a finger on his lips which I found surprisingly smooth... my finger drifted away from his lips after a moment and caressed his cheek as his eyes flickered open. We stared at each other for a long moment, as I became lost in the stormy abyss of his eyes. "Will you return to me?" I whispered.

"I will always return to you," he replied, as his hand crept towards mine. His fingers slowly curled around my hand and lifted it down to his chest, covering the pendant that lay there; he then covered my own hand with his own. "I promise." he murmured. I smiled a little, as my heart thumped erratically in my chest, and then I leant forward, so that my forehead was touching Viggo's. He closed his eyes as I leant closer, delicately brushing my lips against his as my eyes drifted closed. His lips parted a little and I found myself doing the same as his hand ever-so-slightly tightened its grip on mine. With his free hand he reached up to my gave and pulled me closer, his fingers entwining themselves in my hair as he deepened the kiss. He sat up a little, pulling me even closer and taking control of the kiss as I felt his heart race beneath my hand. I sighed softly as his lips moved over mine, almost forgetting that we were in the middle of the scene. Viggo pulled back a little, so that our lips were only slightly touching. My heartbeat fluttered as he breathed his warm breath on my face and the taste of his lips still lingered on mine.

" _Le melon..._ " I whispered breathlessly the line that mean 'I love you,' opening my eyes and gazing up at him. He smiled against my lips and rubbed his forehead against mine a little.

" _Le melon_ ," he repeated in a seductive whisper, kissing my lower lip. I moved my free hand up to his shoulder, and gently pushed him down until he was once again lying down. I smiled and stroked his cheek as he closed his eyes and sighed a little.

"Sleep," I murmured quietly as his breathing regulated. I stood slowly and leant towards him, kissing his lips once more. "Sleep," I repeated in a low whisper.

 

I heard behind me Peter quietly say 'cut' and I was pulled back to the real world. Viggo opened his eyes and smiled at me as he sat up. I sat down beside him as I nervously waited for Peter's evaluation. The short scene had left me breathless and blushing, even though I had only been acting. The kiss meant nothing; it was only another scene... right?

"Wow guys, that was... fantastic," Peter said, staring at us and seeming a little dumbfounded. I smiled with relief and sighed a little, and out of the corner of my eye I saw Viggo smile too. His hand found mine where it rested on the couch and he squeezed it a little, prompting another blush from myself.

"I can't imagine any other way I'd have you guys act that scene out..." Pete murmured after a moment of thought. Viggo squeeze my hand again and out of the corner of my eye I saw him smile. "Thanks for coming down, you can go get changed now, and I'll see you tomorrow." Peter grinned, watching the re-run of the scene. I was tempted to go over and watch it myself, but I went and slipped my shoes on and walked back through the forest with Viggo. I didn't really know what to say to him... I mean, we'd just shared one of the most phenomenal kisses  _ever_! Should I just act like nothing had happened? That would be the professional thing to do, because after all... it was just another scene.

"I think that went really well," Viggo smiled, and then cast me a mischievous glance, "how was that for you?"

I couldn't help it; I just cracked up laughing at that. He had an amazing personality, which ensured that nothing between us became awkward.

"It was great!" I giggled, wiping a tear from my eye. "I wasn't expecting it to go so well!"

"I can't believe that was the last scene we'd do together on the Rivendell set," he sighed, "what a great way to end it!"

"Yeah..." I blushed.

"You were fantastic," he grinned as we approached the trailer.

"Thanks," I smiled shyly, "I couldn't have done it without you. You make my job easy!" He laughed a little and pushed open the door to the trailer. It was true though, it wasn't hard to act like I was close to him, because we already were quite close. It wasn't even hard to act like I was in love with him... because, well... once he was in full costume and everything, he  _was_ Aragorn - who had always been my favourite character in the books (apart from Rana of course). It wasn't that I was in love with his character, but I could still connect with him on a level that I didn't full understand. The kissing was just an added bonus!

Viggo had his makeup off before me, so he wandered away to get his costume off. Lou was busy unclipping my extensions when she stopped and looked at me.

"So... how did it go?" she asked, trying to sound casual, but I could tell she was bursting to find out.

"Pretty well I suppose," I answered with a shrug.

"Oh come on! I want more details than that!" she cried. "What was it like?"

"Like a kiss, I guess," I mumbled, whilst inside my head there was someone shouting, ' _Wrong! It was one of the best on-screen kisses ever_!'

"Ugh, you're hopeless!" she groaned. "I mean; what was Viggo like?" I turned to her and raised an eyebrow.

"You weren't kidding about wanting to know the details..." I muttered.

"Yeah! So, what was he like?"

"Um... nice?" I said in an unsure tone.

"Ack! Kira! I want to know more than that! Like, was he gentle or really passionate-"

"Lou, just stop right there," I said sternly. "If you want the full details, you'll just have to wait until the movie comes out!"

"You're mean..." she grumbled, cleaning away the last of the makeup.

 

***

 

The next day, I was back on the Rivendell set, in another long, flowing dress, as we were filming one of Rana's flashbacks. They were also filming the flashbacks of when Rana and Aragorn were children, so I had met the kids who were supposed to be playing our younger selves. Viggo was away at the Weathertop set at Stone Street Studios, so I hadn't seen him since our kissing scene the previous night.

We were in the middle of a scene where Rana was in Rivendell and Aragorn had gone off to fight for Rohan. One of the extras had volunteered to play the man from Rohan who was bringing me a message from Aragorn, and we were just getting to the part where Rana assumes that Aragorn is dead. Peter was about to shout 'action', so I prepared myself for the part where I cry. I blinked ferociously for a moment, before giving Pete a nod.

"My Lady?" the extra asked as I staggered backwards and collapsed onto a bench as tears tracked down my cheeks. I shook my head a little and whispered the word 'no' over and over again. "My Lady, I apologise for upsetting you, but I was instructed to give you this." The extra said, pressing a piece of tattered parchment to my palm. "He said, 'do not rest until you see this in her hand'." He continued as I unfolded the note. I pretended to read for a moment, knowing that there would be a voice over of Viggo reading the contents of the letter. I then had to start crying tears of relief, so I smiled a little and sighed as the salty droplets fell from my face onto the parchment in my hand. I looked up at the extra, looking as if I had forgotten he was there.

"I am sorry; you must be weary after your journey. Please, come in and you can rest," I mumbled, standing and drying my eyes on the sleeve of my dress, before ushering him through an archway just as Peter yelled 'cut'.

"Great work guys!" He grinned. "We just need to film the part where you're leaving to go to Rohan, and then we can call it a day."

I smiled and practically jumped up and down with excitement, this meant I got to ride a horse! Yay! I had to go and change into a different costume though. I rushed out of the set and returned quickly in a tunic, breeches and a long, blue velvet cloak. One of the trainers handed me the reins of a beautiful dappled grey mare. I patted her flank and smiled.

"So you know how to ride then?" Peter asked.

"Well I should hope so! I've only been doing it since I was nine!" I laughed, practising swinging myself into the saddle without catching my cloak on anything. This was also the scene where Rana was given her pendant by Elrond, so Hugo was there, looking as if he had just been dragged out of bed.

"Hi!" I smiled as I dismounted from the horse. "Ready to go?"

"Yep..." he muttered, downing his cup of coffee and giving himself a shake.

We managed to get through the scene quickly, and I ended with me galloping out the gate on my horse. We trotted back onto the set after the cameras stopped rolling.

"Nice work, Ki," Peter smiled. "That's all for today! Actually, it's the last shot you'll do on location here!"

"I know! Thanks, Pete!" I grinned. "What are we doing tomorrow?"

"Ah, that's what I was just about to tell you!" he smirked knowingly. "You know how we have a scene after the Fellowship leave Lothlórien in the boats?"

"Yeah, the one where they're paddling down the Anduin?"

"Exactly, well we're having a training day down at the docks in Wellington tomorrow, where you get to do a bit of boat handling!" Pete smiled.

"Wow, really? That's awesome!" I cried.

"Yes, so you're all getting picked up from the hotel tomorrow and get to spend the day down there. So have fun!"

"Yeah, I will!" I grinned, giving him a quick hug, as I wouldn't see him for a few days, "See you later, Pete!" I called as I jogged back to the trailer.


	10. Bloom, Boyd, Monaghan... You're All Dead!

**The Making Of...**

**Chapter Ten: Bloom, Boyd, Monaghan... You're All Dead!**

 

We stepped out of the minibus at the Wellington docks just after ten in the morning, and found ourselves faced with several large warehouses, and a small group of people all in wet suits emblazoned with 'Wellington Watersports Centre'.

"Hi," one of the guys said, stepping forward. He was tanned, tall, muscular and blonde (to sum his appearance up, he might have just jogged off the set of Baywatch). "you must be the guys from The Lord of the Rings. I'm Mike, and I'll be showing you some basic boat-handling skills today."

I had to physically stop myself from rolling my eyes at his typical introduction. 'Hi, I'm a guy who does sports better than you! Let's go do sports!'

"Hey, I'm Kira," I smiled forcibly as he shook my hand, he then moved on to everyone else, including the camera crew that had tagged along. Apparently they wanted some 'Making of' footage for the DVDs. Everyone who was in the Fellowship was here, except for Ian, because he would never have to be in the boats, as everyone was supposed to think that Gandalf was dead at that point.

We went into one of the warehouses, which contained several Canadian-style canoes, and other Watersports equipment. I located the ladies changing room and changed into my bikini and pulled a pair of shorts and a t-shirt over the top.

As I stepped out, I went to find the other equipment I would need. As I passed the men's changing rooms I heard several screams - mostly sounding like they were coming from Billy, Dom, and Elijah.

"Dom! Stop looking at me you pervert!"

"Yeah? Well stop dancing around while you're in the middle of changing!"

"Billy! Turn around! Have mercy!"

"Shut it, Wood!"

And so forth.

I rolled my eyes and walked off to find a life jacket. As I was pulling it on, John walked out of the changing rooms, grimacing a little.

"Honestly, those three have no shame!" he muttered as I laughed.

"I thought we all gave up our dignity when we entered acting, isn't that the general rule?" I grinned.

"Fair point," he smiled as Viggo, Orlando and the two Sean's entered the room. They were all wearing similar clothes to me (minus the bikini... I hoped). A few minutes later, Billy, Dom and Elijah stumbled out, giving each other occasional punch on the arm. As soon as we were all assembled, Mike and the Baywatch Squad appeared.

"Ready to get out on the water guys?" Mike said enthusiastically, giving a glistening white-toothed smile.

Not long after that, I found myself sitting in a canoe on the water with Viggo (as we would be in the same boat in the movie... no pun intended), being coached and told things I already knew. This wasn't my first time out in a boat.

"Right guys, now you know the basics, let's have a race!" Mike cried cheerfully from the small rescue dingy he and his 'crew' were in. He threw a marker buoy into the water a couple of meters away and aligned his boat parallel to it. "Okay, start parallel to my boat and first team around the mark and back is the winner!"

"Sweet," I muttered under my breath, before turning to Viggo who was sitting behind me, "let's thrash these guys!" I grinned as we paddled to the 'start line'. Billy and dom paddled up beside us and really gave us the evil eye - I supposed they were trying to psyche us out.

"You're going down, Forest!" Dom hissed under his breath.

"You too, Mortensen," Billy added.

"Hobbits..." I muttered, rolling my eyes and smirking. I'd seen those two practicing, we had this in the bag. Orlando and John were having a rough time of it, due to the... uh, 'unbalanced weight', both Sean's and Elijah were sitting this session out, due to the odd number of people, and the fact that there were only three boats. I was confident we were the best team, even though Viggo hadn't had much experience of this sort.

"Go!" Mike yelled and I started ferociously paddling.

"Whoa! John, don't lurch forward like that!" I heard Orlando yell from behind us as Viggo and I got into our rhythm.

"Uh, Ki?" I heard Viggo mumble behind me after a few seconds. "You might want to try and speed up a little."

"What?" I asked, turning to see Billy and Dom approaching our side, and looking downright diabolical. "Crap..." I muttered, increasing our speed. We reached the mark and turned, with Billy and Dom close on our trail, hurling insults at us.

"Sore losers!" I yelled over my shoulder as we passed Mike's boat and I cheered. Orlando and John were still spinning in circles near the mark, and our main competitors were just pulling up behind us.

I suddenly felt something yank the back of the boat and looked back to see Billy grabbing the stern, with Dom close behind. He gave me a malicious smirk, before giving the boat a sharp twist.

"Wait, no!" I screamed as the boat flipped and I was rather ungracefully dumped in the freezing cold water. "Ugh!" I yelled, resurfacing and coughing violently, as I had swallowed some of the salt water. I bobbed for about a second or two as I saw Viggo resurface and swim to my side.

"You okay?" he asked breathlessly.

"Yep..." I growled, glaring daggers at Billy and Dom, who were in hysterics. "Hey Boyd!" I yelled. "The second I get my hands on you I'm gonna kick your Scottish ass all the way back to Glasgow! That goes for you too, Monaghan!"

I heard Viggo chuckle beside me as he grabbed the upside-down boat and flipped it over, just as Mike came over to save the day... not. Viggo scrambled into the boat unaided, and reached down to pull me in. I flopped in with about as much elegance as a drowned rat and started wringing out my sopping wet hair.

"Well that went well," Viggo muttered with a smirk. I glared at our rivals with narrowed eyes.

"Revenge is a dish best served cold..." I hissed under my breath.

"As cold as the sea?"

"Damn straight," I smirked, grabbing my paddle from where it was floating in the water and mapped out a plan in my head. "Hey, Vig? Do you think you could handle the boat on your own for a few minutes?"

"Why?"

"Because I'm about to jump ship," I smirked, paddling over to Billy and Dom, who were still giggling like schoolgirls.

"Do your worst," Viggo laughed.

"Oh, I will," I smirked, stowing my paddle in the base of the boat and readying myself as we approached the other canoe. "Just get out of the way quickly so you don't get tipped... ready... now!" I cried, launching myself onto the opposite canoe, capsizing it instantly with the impact. I scrambled quickly onto the upturned hull as Dom and Billy popped out of the water. I sat cross-legged on the bobbing boat and smiled victoriously. "Hi guys," I winked as they glowered. The phrase 'if looks could kill...' sprang to mind.

"You are so dead, Ki!" Dom yelled, swimming towards me.

"Bring it," I challenged, standing a little unsteadily. Dom grabbed the boat and tried to shake me off, but I managed to keep my balance. Dom hauled himself up onto the boat and stood, wobbling slightly. He took a step towards me and I shoved him hard in the chest with both hands. It didn't hurt him - because of his padded life jacket - but nonetheless he still toppled into the water. I skipped on the spot victoriously, with about as much balance as Bambi on ice... suddenly, the boat was rammed by something large and I yelped as I was thrown into the water. I resurfaced quickly with a gasp and looked up to see Orlando and John chuckling to themselves in their canoe.

"Damn it, Bloom..." I muttered under my breath, scowling as I bobbed about, using my life jacket to keep myself afloat.

"Get her!" I heard Billy yell behind me as I turned to see him and Dom swimming towards me.

"Oh shit..." I mumbled, trying to swim back to the refuge of the boat.

"Kira!" I looked up to see Viggo paddling towards me. I grinned as he offered me his hand. We grasped each other's wrists and he quickly pulled me into the boat.

"Thanks!" I gasped breathlessly.

"You've made some enemies," he joked as we paddled easily away from a grumbling Billy and Dom. We heard a yell behind us and saw that John and Orlando had overbalanced and both of them had been dumped in the water.

"Uh, guys?" I heard Mike say, sounding a little panicked that he was losing control of the situation. "Perhaps we should let the others have a turn?"

"I think he means he wants us out of the boats!" I whispered to Viggo.

"Well, I think I've had quite enough for one day!" John smiled, bobbing in the water quite happily.

"I think we'll head in too," Viggo smiled, as we paddled back to the jetty where Elijah and the two Sean's were waiting. We clambered out of the boat and let Elijah and Sean Astin take our boat.

"Good luck guys," I grinned as they paddled off. Orlando and John appeared and John climbed out, and wandered back to the changing rooms as Sean hopped into the canoe. "Have fun, Bean!" I grinned, giving their boat a nudge with my foot and watching as they span in a full circle, before they gained control and followed the others.

"Well, what now?" Viggo asked.

"I suppose we could just watch," I shrugged, pulling off my life jacket and sitting down on the jetty with my feet dangling over the side. Viggo followed my lead and we sat and watched our colleagues 'misadventures'. Orlando and Sean crashed into Billy and Dom, and they both capsized, and then Elijah and Sean crashed into the two upturned boats, resulting in a three-way watery disaster. I laughed as Mike zoomed around, not really knowing what to do. I could tell we definitely weren't the most mature group to take part in this activity.

"Are you cold?" Viggo asked suddenly.

"Nope!" I smiled. "I'm British, I can stand a little cold!"

"Good," he smiled, turning back to watch the others. After a few minutes, I noticed him subtly place his hand on my lower back. What was he doing?

With a sudden movement he pushed me off the edge of the jetty into the water below. I wasn't wearing a life jacket, so I had to swim to the surface myself. I spluttered a little as I resurfaced and glared at Viggo.

"Jerk!" I yelled, and he pretended to look hurt.

"Sorry, I couldn't resist," he smiled.

"I didn't even have a life jacket on! For shame, Viggo, for shame," I scolded him, as I treaded water. I swam around a little, unhindered by my safety equipment and floated on my back for a while, staring up at Viggo.

"You look like a corpse," he commented.

"Charming," I muttered, ducking beneath the water and swimming towards him. I popped up beneath his feet and grabbed his leg, yanking him down into the water. I laughed as he resurfaced, looking slightly confused.

"What did I do to deserve that?" he cried in mock horror.

"You pushed me in,"

"Well you called me a jerk,"

"Well  _you_ said I looked like a corpse," I retorted.

"Touché..." he muttered, putting his hand on top of my head and dunking me under the water. I swam down and grabbed his ankles, pulling him down with me. I swam up and waited for him to resurface.

"Roar, I'm a shark," I giggled, as he raised an eyebrow.

"Oh yeah, I forgot there were sharks around here," he mumbled, brushing his soaked hair out of his eyes.

"What?" I squeaked.

"Yeah, Great Whites and everything," he replied as my eyes widened. "You scared?"

"Uh... no..." I mumbled awkwardly. "Because they rarely attack humans and stuff..." I trailed off uncertainly as he laughed, before humming the theme tune from 'Jaws' as I became more and more uneasy. He suddenly grabbed my arms, making me jump.

"Viggo! Stop it!" I wailed, splashing water at him.

"Y'know what the best way to escape a shark is?" he asked mischievously.

"What?" I asked, taking the bait.

"Swim faster than the person next to you!" he laughed, turning and swimming back to the jetty.

"I'm gonna kill you, Vig!" I growled, swimming after him. We hauled ourselves up onto the jetty just as the others were landing the boats.

On our way back to the changing rooms, we decided to go out later in the evening, apparently Billy and Dom had found 'one of the best bars ever', and wanted to take us there.

"Fine," I smiled. "But the first round is on you guys!"


	11. I Never Said That the Drinks Were On Me!

**The Making Of...**

**Chapter Eleven: I Never Said That the Drinks Were On Me!**

 

After canoeing, we got back to the hotel and the guys agreed to meet down in the reception area at six, and we'd go out to dinner and - as Billy put it - 'Hit the town'.

I went back to my room and took a shower, before getting ready for the night ahead. I dressed in a lilac, floaty cami top, and my black skinny jeans, topped off with my sandal high heels. I grinned at my reflection and skipped over to my bed, where my phone was lying, and checked my messages. There was one waiting from my agent, Maxine.

' _Hey babes! Sorry I haven't called you yet but I've been super busy! How's everything going down there?_

 _Maxi xo_ '

I smiled at the message from my agent and quickly replied.

' _Hiya! Everything's fantastic! Filming is amazing and everyone is so nice! Thank you so, so much for telling me about this job! You're such a superstar!_

 _Ki x_ '

Once I'd sent off the message I looked at the clock on my bedside table - it was almost time to go meet everyone. I grabbed my handbag and turned off the music that was blaring from my speakers before heading downstairs.

Everyone was already gathered by the time I got there, except John - who was going out with some other friends from the set, and Sean Astin, who was spending the night with his family.

"Hey Ki," Billy smiled, "ready to go?"

"Yeah," I grinned, slipping my bag over my shoulder as we left the hotel.

We walked to a restaurant, and halfway through our meal we were recognised by a small group.

"Hey," a guy nervously said, approaching us flanked by a few of his friends. "You wouldn't happen to be the guys from The Lord of the Rings, would you?"

"Yeah we are," I smiled warmly.

"You're the first people to recognise us!" Orlando laughed.

"People notice Elijah all the time," Dom pointed out.

"Yeah, but we haven't been recognised as a group yet," Orlando argued.

We signed a few signatures for them, they were nice, even though they didn't really know who we were, they'd just seen the cast list. Maybe with a bit of luck, those signatures would be valuable in the next few years? I smiled to myself as we finished our meal and paid.

"Well guys, we're officially famous!" Billy whooped once we were walking down the street.

"Being recognised  _once_ counts as famous?" Dom chipped in.

"Why not?" I laughed. "Let's just enjoy it!"

Billy and Dom took us to a bar where we sat down and talked for a while. Orlando and Elijah spotted a couple of girls up at the bar and went to chat to them. My phone buzzed in my pocket and I checked for messages.

' _Hey Ki! Have you been too busy with your hot actors to even text me? Haha!_

 _Luc xo_ '

I smiled at the message from my best friend and was about to reply when Billy reached across the table and snatched the phone out of my hand.

"Hey!" I cried. "Give that back!" Billy waggled his eyebrows at me and read the message.

"Ooh, who's Luc? Your boyfriend?" He cooed, holding my phone out of reach. I may have imagined it, but I though Viggo tensed a little beside me.

"What? No!" I cried, trying to grab my phone. "Anyway, it's not pronounced like 'Luke' is like 'Lu-ce', it's short for Lucy, she's my best friend back home."

"Oh, well that's boring," Billy huffed, tossing my phone back. I caught it one handed and punched in a quick reply before safely stowing my phone in my back pocket.

I looked over at Dom, who looked a bit glum.

"You okay, Dom?" I asked as he looked up and shrugged. Billy leaned over to me and whispered in my ear.

"He's bummed because his girlfriend dumped him before we started shooting. She made him choose between her and the movie."

"That sucks," I muttered. "Cheer up, Dom, it sounds like she wasn't worth your time." I tried to comfort him, laying my hand on his arm. He gave me a sceptical look and then looked back down at his lap. "Look, if she was really into you, she'd have gladly followed you out here and supported you, but instead she tried to get you to blow the biggest chance of your career! She doesn't deserve you, mate." I shrugged and he looked up again, looking like a depressed puppy.

"Y'think so?"

"Yep, you should be up at that bar with the guys!" I grinned, giving him a playful punch in the shoulder. "Any girl would be lucky to have you."

"Thanks... but I think I'll leave it for now," he sighed. I rolled my eyes and grabbed his wrist.

"Come on," I grinned, edging past Viggo and dragging Dom with me. I pulled him up to where Elijah and Orlando were chatting to three girls. "Hi guys!" I smiled cheerfully, shoving Dom into the small circle. "We thought we'd come join you! I'm Kira and this is Dom." I grinned, elbowing him a little.

"Hi," he mumbled, sounding uncomfortable. I gave him another elbow and he forced out a smile.

"That wasn't so hard now, was it?" I whispered so only he could hear me over the loud music in the bar. He shrugged a little and I looked back at our table, pretending to hear one of the guys say something. "Oh, I think the guys want me to get them some drinks. Have fun!" I waved, walking back to the table and taking my seat on the sofa behind it."

"Thanks, Ki," Billy smiled, "he'd have been moping all night."

"It's nothing," I shrugged. "Why aren't you up there?"

"I'm not looking for anyone." He smiled. "Long-term relationship."

"Neat." I grinned.

"So what about you?" he asked.

"I'm not in the market." I smiled, shaking my head. "I've had a couple of bad relationships in the past, so I'm sort of lying low for now. But if the right guy comes along, who knows?" I shrugged, taking a sip of my drink and sitting back, watching as Dom became acquainted with the girls at the bar. "Do you guys want anything?" I asked, nodding towards the bar. I quickly took their orders and walked up, leaning on the counter as I waited for the drinks.

"Hey."

I turned to see a tall guy wearing a football top and baggy, low-hanging jeans nod to me. His face looked like he'd had his nose broken once or twice. I smiled a little and turned back to the bar, all my body language indicating that I didn't want to talk to him. "Can I buy you a drink?" he asked. I shook my head.

"No thanks," I smiled again, but in my head I was screaming, ' _piss off, creep!_ ' He kept persisting that he anted to buy me a drink, but I kept refusing as I became increasingly uncomfortable. I glanced over at Dom, Orlando and Elijah, but they were all deep in conversation and didn't even notice that I was having a small predicament.

"You want to come outside for a smoke?"

"I don't smoke." I said firmly. Why wouldn't the bartender hurry up with the drinks? Finally they arrived, but I realised I wouldn't be able to carry them all over at once. I'd have to make two trips. "Right, well, I better get these back to my friends." I said as cheerfully as I could, turning away, but he caught my arm roughly.

"Look-" he began as I started to get pretty scared, but I felt an arm around my shoulder. I looked up to see Viggo and Sean standing beside me, Viggo had his arm around me and was smiling, but I could tell he wasn't happy. There was a coldness in his eyes that I hadn't seen before.

"Hey, Ki," he grinned forcibly.

"We thought you might need a hand bringing the drinks back," Sean smiled as I sighed with relief.

"Thanks guys," I sighed. I meant it in more ways than one. They lead me away quickly, firing dirty glances at the jerk who'd been trying to pick me up. He'd backed off quite quickly, and I couldn't blame him, Viggo and Sean could be pretty intimidating. We sat back down and I smacked my forehead against the table.

"Are you alright, Kira?" Viggo asked, with his hand on my shoulder.

"Yeah..." I mumbled, sitting up and slumping back in my seat.

"That guy was  _huge_!" Billy murmured with raised eyebrows.

"He was even bigger from where I was standing," I muttered under my breath.

A few uneventful minutes later, after I'd calmed down a bit, my phone suddenly buzzed in my pocket again; I checked it and saw that my mum was ringing me. "I'm just going to take this outside." I smiled. "See you in a moment." I jogged outside and found a quiet, dark spot away from the smokers before I answered the phone.

 

***Viggo's Point of View***

 

I watched as Kira left and I kept my eyes on the guy from earlier, watching to see if he'd follow her. Thankfully he didn't.

"Remind me to never let her wander off in a bar again," I sighed, sipping my drink thoughtfully.

"I'm sure she would have been able to handle it," Sean smiled.

"Would she?" I asked sceptically.

"Did you not see what she did to me and Dom earlier in the boats?" Billy joked.

"No offence, but you two are pretty small guys," Sean teased. I laughed along with them, but my thoughts were still on Kira. I was worried about her. What would have happened if we hadn't stepped in? Maybe I just had to have faith in her. I knew she was stronger than she looked, and she had enough wits to get her out of most situations, but I still wanted to make sure she was safe. I spotted the guy who had been hitting on her move towards the door, so I stood.

"I'm just going to go check on Ki..." I muttered, walking out the door. I saw the guy standing with the other smokers, but I couldn't see Kira. I turned and saw her leaning against the wall a few metres away, her head lowered as she stared at the blank screen of her phone, as if in a daze. As I walked closer, I saw the lights from the bar reflected in her eyes, and in the tears that rolled down her cheeks.

"Kira?" I murmured quietly. She looked up quickly and tried to wipe away the tears on the back of her hand. "Kira, what's wrong?" I asked, my concern apparent as I saw fresh tears appear in her eyes. I quickly pulled her into a hug and she buried her head in my chest, gripping my shirt with shaking fingers.

"I'm... I'm sorry," she whispered as I held her.

"Ssh, it's alright." I hushed her, feeling her body tremble with silent sobs. "What's wrong?" she was quiet for a moment as I gently stroked her hair, trying to get her to calm down.

"I-I just miss everyone at home so much..." she whimpered.

"You're homesick?" I murmured, she nodded a little.

"I've been away from my family before... but I've never been so far away." She sniffed, loosening her hold on my shirt as her breathing became less rapid and she started to calm.

"I understand." I said softly. "I know it's hard..." I trailed off as she nodded.

"I'm sorry." she apologised again. "I've probably wrecked the evening, haven't I?"

"Don't be stupid." I smiled. "You're allowed to be homesick." I hugged her tightly and then released her, but keeping my hands on her arms. She smiled weakly and wiped away her tears.

"Thanks, Viggo," she whispered.

"No problem," I smiled. "Do you want to go back in or...?"

"No..." she sighed, shaking her head, "I think I'll just head back to the hotel."

"I'll come with you then," I decided quickly.

"You don't have to..." she protested quietly.

"You really think I'd let you wander the streets of Wellington at night on your own?" I smirked. "I'll just go inside and tell the guys that we're going."

"Okay..." she nodded as I walked back into the noisy bar. I found Billy and Sean quickly and caught their attention.

"Hey guys, Kira's not feeling well, so I'm just going to take her back to the hotel." I explained, making an excuse for Ki.

"Too much to drink?" Billy joked, even though he'd had more in the past half hour than she'd had all night. I shrugged and waved.

"See you later anyway!"

I jogged back outside and found Kira where I'd left her. I walked to her side and took her hand as a form of comfort. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah..." she smiled, squeezing my hand a little. "Thanks."

"Anytime," I laughed, looking at my watch. "It's still early, do you want to go back and watch a movie?"

"Sure," she said, a little more cheerfully, seeming to brighten up. I smiled as we started to walk back along the streets to the hotel.


End file.
